More than a third of Arizona households experienced job disruptions during the first months of the pandemic, but university researchers found that the impact was much greater on Hispanic households.

Researchers at Arizona State University and the University of Arizona found that nearly 60% of Hispanic households in the state experienced job disruptions compared to 20% of non-Hispanic white households. 

They also found that almost three-quarters of Hispanic households with job disruptions faced food insecurity. This shows not all Arizonans have experienced the pandemic equally, said UA assistant professor Anna Josephson.

“Really that’s not the case at all and that becomes really clear when you look at Hispanic households who have really suffered much more in particular due to food security during the pandemic," she said. 

Going into the pandemic, 38% of Hispanic households were already persistently food insecure, Josephson added. 

“People were already on tricky footing and ended up in a worse circumstance than non-Hispanic white households of whom only 15% were persistently food insecure," she said. 

In addition, the researchers found job disruptions also disproportionately affected Arizona households making less than $25,000 annually. 

Across all Arizonan households, families worried about food costs, food safety and food sufficiency.

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