Summary: GAO discussed equal employment opportunities among government contractors in the aerospace industry between 1979 and 1986, focusing on whether: (1) representation of minorities and women in the industry changed over time; (2) the aerospace representation reflected their representation in the labor force; and (3) minorities and women in aerospace received pay similar to white males for similar work. GAO found that: (1) in the aerospace industry as a whole, the numbers of minorities and women increased slightly over the period, but the numbers of blacks as a group, and women as a group, were lower than in the national work force; (2) Asians and Hispanics had full representation as aerospace managers and professionals compared to the national work force, but blacks and women were less represented in those jobs, even though women's representation almost doubled over the period; (3) all the minority groups had lower managerial representation in the Los Angeles and Seattle area aerospace industries; (4) all minorities in Los Angeles had lower representation in the professional category, while in Seattle, only blacks had lower representation; (5) women were less represented in both Los Angeles and Seattle as both managers and professionals than the comparison groups; (6) women and minority managers and professionals earned less than white men in the same jobs; (7) minorities and women had greater concentration in the entry and middle management levels and earned less than white men, even though the disparity was less in those categories; and (8) blacks earned the least in relation to average managerial and professional salaries compared to white men.
