Montgomery County committee highlights disparities in Black labor market and calls for targeted programs

The Montgomery County Economic Development Committee on July 13 heard a focused briefing on the county’s Black labor market and pressed for targeted programs to improve employment and homeownership outcomes.

Anthony Featherstone, president and CEO of WorkSource Montgomery, presented high‑level findings and described the briefing as “a conversation starter,” citing Lightcast and county planning figures. Featherstone said Black residents make up about 20% of the county’s population and are expected to grow by roughly 10% over the next decade. He told the committee that Black homeownership stands at about 46% compared with a countywide rate of about 66%, and that Black residents are overrepresented among ALICE (asset‑limited, income‑constrained, employed) and poverty households.

Why it matters: Councilmembers said the figures show persistent disparities that affect economic mobility and housing access. Lorian Sells (Council Member) and others asked how the county measures whether displaced federal workers are being reconnected to comparable private‑sector jobs and called for integrated performance measures linking job quality, wages and housing affordability.

Featherstone summarized unemployment data and programmatic priorities: while countywide unemployment was reported near 3.5% for the quarter, historical and Planning Department analyses suggest Black unemployment is higher than the county average and that thousands of Black residents received unemployment assistance in April. “We don’t have BLS race‑disaggregated local data for every month, but historical trends and the planning report indicate higher Black unemployment,” Featherstone said, framing the presentation as a prompt for deeper, disaggregated tracking.

Council members proposed concrete follow‑ups. Several members urged a county dashboard that would track Black labor force participation, unemployment by race, median wages, industry representation, and homeownership and wealth indicators. Council Member Evan Glass emphasized housing as central to the discussion, noting that average single‑family sales approached $1,000,000 while attached housing averaged about $500,000, and argued that building more multifamily and attached housing at accessible price points is part of the solution.

Workforce actions noted in the meeting included expanding pre‑employment and summer youth programs, strengthening entrepreneurship supports for Black entrepreneurs and partnering with MCPS and Montgomery College on career pathways. Featherstone recommended scaling youth employment tracks and strengthening the entrepreneurship ecosystem.

The committee asked WorkSource Montgomery to return with more detailed, disaggregated metrics and program outcomes so the council can better target investments and evaluate progress.