Working Paper: NBER ID: w4672
Authors: David E. Bloom; Giles Grenier; Morley Gunderson
Abstract: This paper uses pooled 1971, 1981, and 1986 Canadian census data to evaluate the extent to which (1) the earnings of Canadian immigrants at the time of immigration fall short of the earnings of comparable Canadian-born individuals, and (2) immigrants' earnings grow more rapidly over time than those of the Canadian-born. Variations in the labor market assimilation of immigrants according to their gender and country of origin are also analyzed. The results suggest that recent immigrant cohorts have had more difficulty being assimilated into the Canadian labor market than earlier ones, an apparent consequence of recent changes in Canadian immigration policy, labor market discrimination against visible minorities, and the prolonged recession of the early 1980s.
Keywords: Canadian immigrants; labor market assimilation; earnings growth; immigration policy
JEL Codes: J15; J31; J61
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Earnings of immigrants at the time of immigration (K37) | Observable human capital and demographic characteristics (J19) |
| Earnings of immigrants at the time of immigration (K37) | Earnings of comparable Canadian-born individuals (J39) |
| Years since migration (YSM) (J11) | Growth of immigrants' earnings over time (J69) |
| Years since migration (YSM) (J11) | Time it takes for immigrants' earnings to catch up with Canadian-born individuals (J69) |
| Cohort effects (C92) | Labor market outcomes of immigrants (J61) |
| Labor market discrimination, economic conditions, immigration policy changes (J79) | Labor market outcomes of immigrants (J61) |