IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ces/ceswps/_4322.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Effect of Temporary Migration Experience on Occupational Mobility in Estonia

Author

Listed:
  • Jaan Masso
  • Raul Eamets
  • Pille Mõtsmees

Abstract

The literature on return migration includes several studies on the impact of foreign work experience on the returnees’ earnings or their decision to become self-employed; however in this paper we analyze the less studied effect on occupational mobility, i.e. how the job in home country after return compares to the one before migration. The effect of temporary migration on occupational mobility is analyzed using a unique data from Estonian online job search portal covering ca 10-15% of total workforce that includes thousands of employees with temporary migration experience. The focus on a data from a Central and Eastern European country is motivated by that the opening of the old EU countries’ labour markets for the workforce of the new member states has led to massive East-West migration. We did not find any positive effect of temporary migration on upward occupational mobility and in case of some groups, like females, the effect was negative. The results could be related to the typically short term nature of migration and the occupational downshifting abroad as well as the functioning of home country labour market.

Suggested Citation

  • Jaan Masso & Raul Eamets & Pille Mõtsmees, 2013. "The Effect of Temporary Migration Experience on Occupational Mobility in Estonia," CESifo Working Paper Series 4322, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_4322
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.cesifo.org/DocDL/cesifo1_wp4322.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ilahi, Nadeem, 1999. "Return Migration and Occupational Change," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 3(2), pages 170-186, June.
    2. Alan Barrett & Philip J. O’Connell, 2001. "Is There a Wage Premium for Returning Irish Migrants?," The Economic and Social Review, Economic and Social Studies, vol. 32(1), pages 1-21.
    3. Calogero Carletto & Talip Kilic, 2011. "Moving Up the Ladder? The Impact of Migration Experience on Occupational Mobility in Albania," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(6), pages 846-869.
    4. Oded Galor & Nachum Sicherman, 1988. "A Theory of Career Mobility," Working Papers 1988-27, Brown University, Department of Economics.
    5. Augustin Coulon & Matloob Piracha, 2005. "Self-selection and the performance of return migrants: the source country perspective," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 18(4), pages 779-807, November.
    6. Gibson, John & McKenzie, David, 2011. "The microeconomic determinants of emigration and return migration of the best and brightest: Evidence from the Pacific," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 18-29, May.
    7. Jan Saarela & Fjalar Finnäs, 2009. "Return migrant status and employment in Finland," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 30(5), pages 489-506, August.
    8. C. Simon Fan & Oded Stark, 2007. "The brain drain, 'educated unemployment', human capital formation, and economic betterment," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 15, pages 629-660, October.
    9. Campos, Nauro F. & Dabusinskas, Aurelijus, 2009. "So many rocket scientists, so few marketing clerks: Estimating the effects of economic reform on occupational mobility in Estonia," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 261-275, June.
    10. Louka T. Katseli & Robert E.B. Lucas & Theodora Xenogiani, 2006. "Effects of Migration on Sending Countries: What Do We Know?," OECD Development Centre Working Papers 250, OECD Publishing.
    11. Neal, Derek, 1999. "The Complexity of Job Mobility among Young Men," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 17(2), pages 237-261, April.
    12. Anna Iara, 2006. "Skill diffusion by temporary migration? Returns to Western European working experience in the EU-accession countries," CERS-IE WORKING PAPERS 0607, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, revised 30 Aug 2006.
    13. Mattoo, Aaditya & Neagu, Ileana Cristina & Özden, Çaglar, 2008. "Brain waste? Educated immigrants in the US labor market," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 255-269, October.
    14. George J. Borjas & Bernt Bratsberg, 2021. "Who Leaves? The Outmigration Of The Foreign-Born," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Foundational Essays in Immigration Economics, chapter 5, pages 93-104, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    15. Sicherman, Nachum & Galor, Oded, 1990. "A Theory of Career Mobility," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 98(1), pages 169-192, February.
      • Galor, Oded & Sicherman, Nachum, 1988. "A Theory of Career Mobility," Working Papers 51, The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, George J. Stigler Center for the Study of the Economy and the State.
    16. Alice Mesnard, 2004. "Temporary migration and self-employment: evidence from Tunisia," Brussels Economic Review, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles, vol. 47(1), pages 119-138.
    17. Anna Iara, 2006. "Skill Diffusion by Temporary Migration? Returns to Western European Working Experience in the EU Accession Countries," Development Working Papers 210, Centro Studi Luca d'Agliano, University of Milano.
    18. Oded Stark & C. Simon Fan, 2009. "The Brain Drain, ‘Educated Unemployment’, Human Capital Formation, and Economic Betterment," International Economic Association Series, in: János Kornai & László Mátyás & Gérard Roland (ed.), Corruption, Development and Institutional Design, chapter 7, pages 120-151, Palgrave Macmillan.
    19. Kupets Olga, 2011. "Brain Gain or Brain Waste? The Performance of Return Labor Migrants in the Ukrainian Labor Market," EERC Working Paper Series 11/06e, EERC Research Network, Russia and CIS.
    20. Sabirianova, Klara Z., 2002. "The Great Human Capital Reallocation: A Study of Occupational Mobility in Transitional Russia," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 191-217, March.
    21. Hazans, Mihails & Philips, Kaia, 2011. "The Post-Enlargement Migration Experience in the Baltic Labor Markets," IZA Discussion Papers 5878, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Merja Kauhanen & Mari Kangasniemi, 2014. "Migration experience, occupational attainment and subjective perceptions of occupational downgrading," Working Papers 291, Työn ja talouden tutkimus LABORE, The Labour Institute for Economic Research LABORE.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Pille Motsmees & Jaan Masso & Raul Eamets, 2013. "The Effect of Migration Experience on Occupational Mobility in Estonia," Discussion Papers 14, Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI).
    2. Nelly Elmallakh & Jackline Wahba, 2022. "Return migrants and the wage premium: does the legal status of migrants matter?," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 35(4), pages 1631-1685, October.
    3. Laurent Bossavie & Çağlar Özden, 2023. "Impacts of Temporary Migration on Development in Origin Countries," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 249-294.
    4. Dustmann, Christian & Glitz, Albrecht, 2011. "Migration and Education," Handbook of the Economics of Education, in: Erik Hanushek & Stephen Machin & Ludger Woessmann (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Education, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 0, pages 327-439, Elsevier.
    5. Kupets Olga, 2011. "Brain Gain or Brain Waste? The Performance of Return Labor Migrants in the Ukrainian Labor Market," EERC Working Paper Series 11/06e, EERC Research Network, Russia and CIS.
    6. Aguilar Esteva, Arturo Alberto, 2013. "Stayers and Returners: Educational Self-Selection among U.S. Immigrants and Returning Migrants," IZA Discussion Papers 7222, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Dustmann, Christian & Fadlon, Itzhak & Weiss, Yoram, 2011. "Return migration, human capital accumulation and the brain drain," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 58-67, May.
    8. Christian Dustmann & Joseph-Simon Görlach, 2016. "The Economics of Temporary Migrations," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 54(1), pages 98-136, March.
    9. Calogero Carletto & Jennica Larrison & Çaglar Özden, 2014. "Informing migration policies: a data primer," Chapters, in: Robert E.B. Lucas (ed.), International Handbook on Migration and Economic Development, chapter 2, pages 9-41, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    10. Campos, Nauro & Dabusinskas, Aurelijus, 2002. "So Many Rocket Scientists, so Few Marketing Clerks: Occupational Mobility in Times of Rapid Technological Change," CEPR Discussion Papers 3531, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    11. Quinones, Esteban J. & Barham, Bradford L., 2018. "Endogenous Selection, Migration and Occupation Outcomes for Rural Southern Mexicans," Staff Paper Series 587, University of Wisconsin, Agricultural and Applied Economics.
    12. Maryna Tverdostup & Jaan Masso, 2016. "The labour market performance of young return migrants after the crisis in CEE countries: the case of Estonia," Baltic Journal of Economics, Baltic International Centre for Economic Policy Studies, vol. 16(2), pages 192-220.
    13. Campos, Nauro F. & Dabusinskas, Aurelijus, 2009. "So many rocket scientists, so few marketing clerks: Estimating the effects of economic reform on occupational mobility in Estonia," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 261-275, June.
    14. Piracha, Matloob & Vadean, Florin, 2010. "Return Migration and Occupational Choice: Evidence from Albania," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(8), pages 1141-1155, August.
    15. Bossavie,Laurent Loic Yves & He Wang, 2022. "Return Migration and Labor Market Outcomes : Evidence from South Asia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10180, The World Bank.
    16. Jackline Wahba, 2014. "Return migration and economic development," Chapters, in: Robert E.B. Lucas (ed.), International Handbook on Migration and Economic Development, chapter 12, pages 327-349, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    17. Cristian ÎNCALTARAU & Sorin-Stefan MAHA & Liviu-George MAHA, 2011. "A Broader Look on Migration: A Two Way Interaction Between Development and Migration in the Country Of Origin," Review of Economic and Business Studies, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, issue 8, pages 285-297, December.
    18. Frédéric Docquier & Hillel Rapoport, 2012. "Globalization, Brain Drain, and Development," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 50(3), pages 681-730, September.
    19. Tiwari, Smriti, 2021. "Do macroeconomic fluctuations at destination matter in determining migrants’ return decisions?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    20. Amelie F. Constant, 2020. "Time-Space Dynamics of Return and Circular Migration: Theories and Evidence," CESifo Working Paper Series 8053, CESifo.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    occupational mobility; temporary migration; Central- and Eastern Europe;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_4322. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Klaus Wohlrabe (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cesifde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.