Posted by Keturah Hetrick on Sept. 18, 2023
The House's pay gap between its Caucasian staffers and the lowest-paid racial groups expanded from Q1 to Q2, according to a new LegiStorm analysis.
In the first quarter, Hispanic staffers were House Democrats' lowest-paid racial group and made a median salary that was 94% that of the median white staffer. That disparity widened to 92% in Q2, leaving Hispanic staffers and American-Asian and Pacific Islanders staffers tied for the party's lowest-paid racial group in Q2.
Black staffers, House Republicans' worst-paid racial group, made 93% that of the median white staffer in Q1. In Q2, Black Republican staffers made 91% that of their white counterparts.
Those pay disparities mean that in six months, Democrats paid their Caucasian staffers a median of over $2,500 more than Hispanic and AAPI staffers, while Republicans paid their Caucasian staffers a median of $3,000 more than their Black staffers.
The racial pay gap held true among staffers with policy and communications job functions. Among constituent services staffers, the median white and non-white aide made virtually the same pay. This analysis does not compare exact job titles.
This analysis examines the median pay across all full-time House staffers but does not reflect further distribution of those pay differences. These salary rates include any annual bonuses and may not necessarily reflect the median staffer's pay rate for the entire year.
