Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP12662
Authors: Assaf Razin
Abstract: The exodus of Soviet Jews to Israel in the 1990s was a unique event. The extraordinary experience of Israel, which has received three quarter million migrants from the Former Soviet Union within a short time, is also relevant for the current debate about globalization. The immigration wave was distinctive for its large high skilled cohort, and its quick integration into the domestic labor market. Immigration also changed the entire economic landscape: it raised productivity, underpinned by the information technological surge, and had significant impact on income inequality. This paper provides an explanation for a possible link between immigration and the level of redistribution in Israel’s welfare state.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: No JEL codes provided
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| high-skilled immigration (J61) | productivity (O49) |
| high-skilled immigration (J61) | income inequality (D31) |
| productivity (O49) | income distribution (D31) |
| immigration (F22) | political economy (P19) |
| political economy (P19) | redistribution policies (H23) |