Immigrant relative earnings estimates are sensitive to the choice of comparison point and the specification of earnings. Non-sample mean comparisons (Borjas, 1985) understate relative earnings. Simple earnings specifications (linear education, quadratic experience) overstate relative earnings for both poorly and well-educated immigrants. Specifications which ignore omitted variables understate the relative earnings of poorly educated immigrants and overstate those of well-educated ones. Although measures of assimilation and changes in immigrant quality are insensitive to earnings specification, they indicate strong earnings growth for post-1964 immigrants, an overall decrease in immigrant quality, and an increase in Mexican immigrant quality. Copyright 1994 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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Volume (Year): 9 (1994) Issue (Month): 1 (Jan.-March) Pages: 71-90 Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML
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George J. Borjas, 2000.
"The Economic Progress of Immigrants,"
NBER Chapters,
in: Issues in the Economics of Immigration, pages 15-50
National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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