Employees in low-wage workplaces, women and African-Americans are more likely to be subject to mandatory arbitration agreements in employment contracts than other groups, potentially limiting their access to the court system, a study released Friday by the Economic Policy Institute found.

The survey authored by Cornell University professor Alexander Colvin found that 57.6 percent of female workers, 59.1 percent of African-American workers and 53.5 percent of male workers are bound by mandatory arbitration agreements.

Nearly 65 percent of workplaces where the average wage is less than $13 an hour also require mandatory arbitration agreements for their employees.