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The Effect of Literacy on Immigrant Earnings

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  • Ana Ferrer
  • David A. Green
  • W. Craig Riddell

Abstract

We examine the impact of literacy on immigrant earnings and the sources of lower returns to education and experience among immigrants. We find that the native-born literacy distribution dominates that for immigrants. However, the two groups obtain similar returns to literacy skills, contrary to discrimination-based explanations for immigrant—native-born earnings differentials. Among the university-educated, literacy differences account for about two-thirds of the earnings gap. However, low returns to foreign experience have a larger impact on this differential. Among the less educated, literacy differences and differences in the returns to experience have similar effects on the earnings differential.

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Bibliographic Info

Article provided by University of Wisconsin Press in its journal Journal of Human Resources.

Volume (Year): 41 (2006)
Issue (Month): 2 ()
Pages:

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Handle: RePEc:uwp:jhriss:v:41:y:2006:i:2:p380-410

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Web page: http://jhr.uwpress.org/

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Cited by:
  1. Casey Warman, 2007. "You Can Take it with You! The Returns to Foreign Human Capital of Male Temporary Foreign Workers," Working Papers 1125, Queen's University, Department of Economics.
  2. Herbert Emery & Ana Ferrer, 2012. "The Social Rate of Return to Investing in Character: An Economic Evaluation of Alberta's Immigrant Access Fund Small Loan Progr," Working Papers 2012-01, Department of Economics, University of Calgary, revised 28 Feb 2012.
  3. Grignon, Michel & Owusu, Yaw & Sweetman, Arthur, 2012. "The International Migration of Health Professionals," IZA Discussion Papers 6517, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
  4. Green, David A. & Riddell, W. Craig, 2012. "Ageing and Literacy Skills: Evidence from Canada, Norway and the United States," CLSRN Working Papers clsrn_admin-2012-16, UBC Department of Economics, revised 27 Apr 2012.
  5. Aled ab Iorwerth, 2012. "To Capture Production or Wellbeing? A Review Article on Towards Measuring the Volume Output of Education and Health Services: A Handbook," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 23, pages 55-70, Spring.
  6. Esteban Sanromà & Raúl Ramos & Hipólito Simón, 2009. "Immigrant wages in the Spanish labour market: does the origin of human capital matter?," Working Papers 2009/8, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
  7. Ostrovsky, Yuri, 2008. "Inegalite et instabilite des gains chez les immigrants au Canada," Direction des etudes analytiques : documents de recherche 2008309f, Statistics Canada, Direction des etudes analytiques.
  8. Steven Wald & Tony Fang, 2008. "Overeducated Immigrants in the Canadian Labour Market: Evidence from the Workplace and Employee Survey," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 34(4), pages 457-480, December.
  9. Picot, Garnett Sweetman, Arthur, 2005. "The Deteriorating Economic Welfare of Immigrants and Possible Causes: Update 2005," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2005262e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
  10. Picot, Garnett & Sweetman, Arthur, 2011. "Canadian Immigration Policy and Immigrant Economic Outcomes: Why the Differences in Outcomes between Sweden and Canada?," IZA Policy Papers 25, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
  11. Picot, Garnett Hou, Feng Coulombe, Simon, 2007. "Chronic Low Income and Low-income Dynamics Among Recent Immigrants," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2007294e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
  12. Ostrovsky, Yuri, 2008. "Earnings Inequality and Earnings Instability of Immigrants in Canada," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2008309e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
  13. Susumu Imai & Derek Stacey & Casey Warman, 2011. "From Engineer to Taxi Driver? Occupational Skills and the Economic Outcomes of Immigrants," Working Papers 1275, Queen's University, Department of Economics.
  14. Chantal Nielsen, 2011. "Immigrant over-education: evidence from Denmark," Journal of Population Economics, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 499-520, April.

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