Unemployed, Now What? The Effect of Immigration on Unemployment Transitions of Native-Born Workers in the United States

46 Pages Posted: 23 Aug 2016

See all articles by Fernando Rios‐Avila

Fernando Rios‐Avila

Bard College - The Levy Economics Institute

Gustavo J. Canavire-Bacarreza

World Bank; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: August 1, 2016

Abstract

Although one would expect the unemployed to be the population most likely affected by immigration, most of the studies have concentrated on investigating the effects immigration has on the employed population. Little is known of the effects of immigration on labor market transitions out of unemployment. Using the basic monthly Current Population Survey from 2001 and 2013 we match data for individuals who were interviewed in two consecutive months and identify workers who transition out of unemployment. We employ a multinomial model to examine the effects of immigration on the transition out of unemployment, using state-level immigration statistics. The results suggest that immigration does not affect the probabilities of native-born workers finding a job. Instead, we find that immigration is associated with smaller probabilities of remaining unemployed, but it is also associated with higher probabilities of workers leaving the labor force. This effect impacts mostly young and less educated people.

Keywords: Immigration; Unemployment Duration; Labor Force Transition

JEL Classification: J1, J6

Suggested Citation

Rios‐Avila, Fernando and Canavire Bacarreza, Gustavo Javier, Unemployed, Now What? The Effect of Immigration on Unemployment Transitions of Native-Born Workers in the United States (August 1, 2016). Center for Research in Economics and Finance (CIEF), Working Papers, No. 16-25 2016, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2827120 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2827120

Fernando Rios‐Avila (Contact Author)

Bard College - The Levy Economics Institute ( email )

Blithewood
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000
United States

Gustavo Javier Canavire Bacarreza

World Bank ( email )

1818 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20433
United States

IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

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