Working Paper: NBER ID: w16544
Authors: Fredrik Andersson; Mónica García-Pérez; John C. Haltiwanger; Kristin McCue; Seth Sanders
Abstract: To what extent do immigrants and the native-born work in separate workplaces? Do worker and firm characteristics explain the degree of workplace concentration? We explore these questions using a matched employer-employee database that extensively covers employers in selected MSAs. We find that immigrants are much more likely to have immigrant coworkers than are natives, and are particularly likely to work with their compatriots. We find much higher levels of concentration for small businesses than for large ones, that concentration varies substantially across industries, and that concentration is particularly high among immigrants with limited English skills. We also find evidence that neighborhood job networks are strongly positively associated with concentration. The effects of networks and language remain strong when type is defined by country of origin rather than simply immigrant status. The importance of these factors varies by immigrant country of origin--for example, not speaking English well has a particularly strong association with concentration for immigrants from Asian countries. Controlling for differences across MSAs, we find that observable employer and employee characteristics account for almost half of the difference between immigrants and natives in the likelihood of having immigrant coworkers, with differences in industry, residential segregation and English speaking skills being the most important factors.
Keywords: Immigrant concentration; Workplace dynamics; Labor market integration
JEL Codes: J61; L22; R23
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| immigrant concentration in workplaces (J82) | likelihood of having immigrant coworkers (J61) |
| language proficiency (G53) | immigrant concentration in workplaces (J82) |
| industry of employment (L89) | immigrant concentration in workplaces (J82) |
| residential segregation (R23) | immigrant concentration in workplaces (J82) |
| neighborhood job networks (R23) | workplace concentration of immigrants (J69) |
| observable employer and employee characteristics (J29) | difference in coworker shares between immigrants and natives (J69) |