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Immigrant economic assimilation: Evidence from UK longitudinal data between 1978 and 2006

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  • Lemos, Sara

Abstract

Using the underexplored, sizeable and long Lifetime Labour Market Database (LLMDB) we estimate the immigrant–native earnings gap at entry and over time for the UK between 1978 and 2006. That is, we attempt to separately estimate cohort and assimilation effects. We also estimate the associated immigrant earnings growth rate and immigrant–native earnings convergence rate. Our estimates suggest that immigrants from more recent cohorts fare better than earlier ones at entry. Furthermore, the earnings of immigrants from more recent cohorts catch up faster with natives' earnings. While the convergence took over 30years for those entering in the post-war, it only took half as long for those entering in the early 2000s. This earnings growth is fastest in the first 10years, and it considerably slows down after 30years.

Suggested Citation

  • Lemos, Sara, 2013. "Immigrant economic assimilation: Evidence from UK longitudinal data between 1978 and 2006," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 339-353.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:labeco:v:24:y:2013:i:c:p:339-353
    DOI: 10.1016/j.labeco.2013.09.009
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    Cited by:

    1. Roupakias, Stelios, 2023. "Immigrant Assimilation in the Greek Labor Market," MPRA Paper 118351, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Altorjai, Szilvia, 2013. "Over-qualification of immigrants in the UK," ISER Working Paper Series 2013-11, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    3. Karoly Fazekas & Zsuzsa Blasko (ed.), 2016. "The Hungarian Labour Market 2016," The Hungarian Labour Market Yearbooks, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, number 2016, December.
    4. Sara Lemos, 2011. "Mind the Gap: What Gap? A Detailed Picture of the Immigrant-Native Earnings Gap in the UK using Longitudinal Data between 1978 and 2006," Discussion Papers in Economics 11/38, Division of Economics, School of Business, University of Leicester, revised Oct 2011.
    5. Jake Anders & Simon Burgess & Jonathan Portes, 2018. "The long-term outcomes of refugees: tracking the progress of the East African Asians," DoQSS Working Papers 18-05, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    6. Lemos, Sara, 2011. "Mind the Gap: A Detailed Picture of the Immigrant-Native Earnings Gap in the UK Using Longitudinal Data Between 1978 and 2006," IZA Discussion Papers 6058, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Henna Busk & Signe Jauhiainen, 2022. "The Careers of Immigrants in Finland: Empirical Evidence for Genders and Year of Immigration," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 2009-2030, December.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Immigration; Assimilation; Wages; Earnings; Earnings-gap; UK;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • J71 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Hiring and Firing
    • J82 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Standards - - - Labor Force Composition
    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration

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