White Men Make at Least 36% More Than Other Groups on Wall Street

A CUNY sociologist has found that white males working in finance make significantly more money than those who aren't white or aren't male, according to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

A CUNY sociologist has found that white males working in finance make significantly more money than those who aren't white or aren't male, according to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. The study by Richard D. Alba, eager like many of his other academic colleagues to analyze banking compensation in light of the Occupy Wall Street and all, say that white males in high finance make a median $154,500 annually on average, which is 36 percent more than their Asian male colleagues, the second highest performing racial or gender group he looked at. The earnings for the rest only go lower:

The median compensation for a white man in the financial industry between 2005 and 2009 was $154,500, 55 percent percent more than that for a white woman, according to the study, which used United States Census data. He made 55 percent more than a Latino man, and 72 percent more than a black man. A typical white woman, with a salary of $100,000, made 59 percent more than a Latina woman, and 65 percent more than a black woman.

The Times and The Journal speculate that gender discrimination at finance firms and few minorities at the elite schools the firms draw recruits from are among the reasons behind the pay gaps. They note though that the work force at financial firms has become more diverse since 2000. And if you don't work in finance, you can take solace in this: on average the compensation for all Wall Streeters irrespective of race or sex is expected to be cut by a third.