The Entry into the U.S. Labor Market of Antebellum European Immigrants, 1840-60
45 Pages Posted: 7 Jan 2008 Last revised: 31 Mar 2023
Date Written: June 1996
Abstract
This study examines the occupational mobility of antebellum immigrants as they entered the U.S. White collar, skilled, and semi-skilled immigrants left unskilled jobs more rapidly after arrival than farmers and unskilled workers. British and German immigrants fared better than the Irish; literate immigrants in rapidly growing counties and places with many immigrants fared best. These findings have implications for (1) the accuracy of estimates of immigrant occupational mobility; (2) the size of the human capital transfer resulting from antebellum immigration; and (3) the causes of the difficulty experienced by some immigrant groups in transferring their skills to the U.S.
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation