According to a study conducted in 2015, 2018, and 2022, white employees accounted for most staff of art museums in North America. That said, the share of white employees declined steadily over the years analyzed, passing from 73 percent in 2015 to 64 percent in 2022. On the other hand, Hispanic staff increased by three percentage points over the same period, while Asian and Black employees rose by two and one percentage points, respectively.
Share of art museum employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by ethnicity
*The 2022 survey refers to 30,314 individuals employed by the 328 museums involved in the study. The 2015 survey included 22,602 employees from 276 museums and the 2018 study analyzed 30,222 employees from 336 museums.
In 2022, the number of respondents per ethnicity was as follows: White = 17,172; Hispanic = 3,357; Black = 3,110; Asian = 1,933; two or more races = 1,126; American Indian or Alaskan Native = 126; Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander = 68; Middle Eastern = 35; declined to state = 3,225. The source did not include "decline to state" responses in graphs that analyze the ethnicity.
Missing percentage points to 100 percent/percentage points exceeding 100 percent are probably due to rounding.
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Mellon Foundation, & Ithaka S+R. (November 16, 2022). Share of art museum employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by ethnicity [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved January 03, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357022/share-art-museum-employees-north-america-by-ethnicity/
Mellon Foundation, und Ithaka S+R. "Share of art museum employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by ethnicity." Chart. November 16, 2022. Statista. Accessed January 03, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357022/share-art-museum-employees-north-america-by-ethnicity/
Mellon Foundation, Ithaka S+R. (2022). Share of art museum employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by ethnicity. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: January 03, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357022/share-art-museum-employees-north-america-by-ethnicity/
Mellon Foundation, and Ithaka S+R. "Share of Art Museum Employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by Ethnicity." Statista, Statista Inc., 16 Nov 2022, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357022/share-art-museum-employees-north-america-by-ethnicity/
Mellon Foundation & Ithaka S+R, Share of art museum employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by ethnicity Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357022/share-art-museum-employees-north-america-by-ethnicity/ (last visited January 03, 2025)
Share of art museum employees in North America in 2015, 2018, and 2022, by ethnicity [Graph], Mellon Foundation, & Ithaka S+R, November 16, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1357022/share-art-museum-employees-north-america-by-ethnicity/