Cherrie Bucknor

Senior Research Fellow Cherrie Bucknor has expertise in sociological and economic analyses of the causes and consequences of racial and gender disparities in the labor market. At Working IDEAL, Cherrie is a member of our Equity Analytics team, conducting statistical and descriptive analyses of compensation, promotion, retention, and availability/utilization for our client partners as well as assisting in racial and gender equity assessments. She also leads our work on market analysis. In addition to her work at Working IDEAL, Cherrie is a PhD candidate in Sociology at Harvard University where her dissertation research examines the importance of extended family wealth for various life outcomes. She is also a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

Cherrie has significant expertise in pay equity and DEI/EEO analytics, including those related to utilization and hiring. She has helped clients look at measures of equity and evaluate racial and gender disparities related to pay, representation, advancement, and other areas. Cherrie is experienced with large public data sets from the Census, BLS, and other sources and has used that expertise in performing availability/utilization analyses for equity reviews and affirmative action planning. 

Cherrie is currently working with several of our non-profit client organizations to develop equitable pay policies and practices. She has contributed to several projects that have included evaluating current policies and identifying potential improvements, conducting quantitative analyses of racial and gender salary disparities, conducting market analyses to benchmark roles, working with clients to develop comprehensive compensation philosophies, and facilitating focus groups for those clients as well. 

Cherrie is currently a PhD candidate in Sociology at Harvard University where she studies how racial disparities in extended-family wealth impact the racial wealth gap and housing outcomes. Her research has been funded by the Washington Center for Equitable Growth and the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies. Cherrie and her research have also been the subject of a profile by the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Prior to Harvard, Cherrie was a Research Associate at the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) in Washington, DC, where she remains a Senior Research Fellow. While at CEPR, she conducted research on the labor market experiences of working-class workers of color as well as the benefits of union representation. Cherrie wrote, co-wrote, and contributed to a wide range of reports, including some focused on evaluating the impact of paid sick leave policies, assessing the impact of autonomous vehicles on the future of work, and union wage and benefits premiums. She has a BA in Sociology from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Public Administration from American University’s School of Public Affairs, and a Master of Arts in Sociology from Harvard University.