When more than 350,000 Black women were let go from the workforce in the first 90 days of 2025, the staggering number sent shockwaves through communities already battling systemic inequities.
For Black women, who, according to 2024 data from Pew Research, continue to lead academically at colleges and universities across the U.S., the layoffs underscored a painful truth: in corporate America, their labor is valued until it isn’t.
The crisis is not limited to jobs. Black women remain three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women, with a maternal mortality rate of 50.3 deaths per 100,000 live births compared to 14.5 for white women. Economically, barriers are just as steep: In 2024, startups led by Black women received just 0.4% of venture capital funding—the lowest share in recent history.
Amid these crushing realities, Black women are forced to do what they have always done: Pivot.
Survival and reimagination
The pivot is not just an act of survival. It is a radical reimagining of possibility. For some, it means leaving corporate boardrooms to launch businesses of their own. For others, it’s building support networks, changing career paths or creating safe spaces to talk about the challenges that many experience but few acknowledge.
“Three hundred and fifty thousand-plus Black women were let go from the workforce within 90 days of 2025. The Black maternal mortality rate is significantly higher than other racial and ethnic groups. In 2024, U.S. startups with Black female founders received a mere 0.4% of total funding,” said Julie Griffith, founder of the Champagne & Melanin Prepare and Pivot series. “My passion for the ultimate success of Black women—and building my community for Black women—is the reason I have these challenging conversations. Everyone’s pivoting—we’re just not talking about it.”
For Griffith, pivoting means “making energetic shifts to get you into a better place. You have to be quick on your feet, like a chameleon. You can’t get bogged down in where you are right now. A lot of Black women feel like they’re alone—but we’re not alone. We’re all pivoting together.”
The Great Discontent
Executive coach and author Janice Sutherland believes the pandemic exposed deeper fractures that still shape Black women’s work lives today.
“One thing we can agree on is that the pandemic has impacted working lives with the phenomenon tagged the ‘Great Resignation,’” Sutherland writes. “But is the great resignation really about the great discontent?”
She notes that discontent—whether from burnout, family responsibilities or personal transitions—often triggers the need for transformation.
“For successful Black women over 40, it’s even harder to pivot or change careers as they face challenges from societal expectations and biases in addition to internal mindset blocks. Will I be thought less competent? Will I be paid less? Will my career take a step backwards?”
The art of pivoting
The concept of pivoting is often framed as corporate jargon, but for many Black women, it is a lived reality. Yaa Akyiwaa, a young professional, calls it “job pivoting.”
“What I have done very early on in my career can be considered job hopping. But I like to replace the term job-hopping with job pivoting—because those who pivot from one job to another are doing it with intention and strategy,” Akyiwaa said. “Pivoting early in my career gave me experience and knowledge I would not have had if I stayed at one company.”
For Sutherland, the stakes of pivoting are even higher for women mid-career.
“One of their biggest hurdles is failure. Fear of failure looms large for Black women,” she said. “As children, we were told we had to be 10 times better than our white counterparts. Decades later, I hear my clients struggling in the job market—because they’re Black. The pressure is amplified at the intersection of age, race and gender.”
More than careers
Pivoting isn’t limited to jobs. For some Black women, it means navigating motherhood while facing a maternal health crisis. For others, it means rethinking financial strategies amid skyrocketing costs of living and barriers to capital.
Griffith explains: “Pivoting is more than finding another job to do. It’s about looking at everything in your life—what do you do from the time you wake up to the time you go to bed? Do you make time for yourself? After you’ve given all day, do you have anything left for yourself?”
Sutherland agrees, urging women not to confuse transition with failure.
“Mid-career doesn’t mean end of career,” she said. “We have to acknowledge that the added pressures we face as Black women are real. But we are worth fighting for.
“Despite all the challenges, it’s not an excuse to give up on our goals. We are trailblazers for those who follow in our path.”
Her advice? Take bold action, “Send that email. Book that call. Gamble on yourself.”
“Remember—you deserve a career aligned to your values. Haven’t you earned the right to be in a career you at least enjoy—if not love?”
A collective movement
While the pivot is often depicted as an individual act, for Black women, it is inherently collective. Safe spaces like Griffith’s Prepare and Pivot series allow women to share strategies, build networks, and remind one another they are not alone.
“Preparing Pivot turned into my signature series because I realized I wasn’t doing this by myself,” Griffith said. “When I started talking to other Black women about making major shifts, pivots and changes, it was almost like the dirty little secret nobody knew about. I want women to know that we have a sense of community.”
The stakes
The stakes of pivoting are high—not just for individual survival, but for the future of entire communities. Black women’s economic participation, leadership and health outcomes shape the stability of families, businesses and neighborhoods. The pivot is not just a coping strategy—it is an urgent demand for structural change.
Black women are reimagining careers, redefining wellness and rewriting pathways to generational wealth. They are refusing to be boxed in by corporate ceilings, inequitable healthcare or limited access to capital. But their pivots should not be mistaken for an excuse for systemic inaction.
As Sutherland reminds: “Being mid-career doesn’t mean you stop dreaming. If you don’t fight for what you want, your aspirations will always be aspirations. So shove those fears aside and take a bold leap.”
By the Numbers
- 350,000 —Black women who lost their jobs in the first 90 days of 2025.
- 3x higher — Black maternal mortality rate compared to white women (50.3 vs. 14.5 deaths per 100,000 live births).
- 0.4% — Share of total U.S. venture capital funding received by Black women–led startups in 2024, the lowest in recent history.
- 25% — Share of U.S. employees who voluntarily quit their jobs during the “Great Resignation.” Many cited low pay, lack of advancement, and burnout as reasons.
- 7% higher — Average pay bump for job switchers compared to those who stay in similar roles, showing the financial upside of pivoting.
