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Unskilled immigration, technical progress, and wages—Role of the household sector

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  • Sugata Marjit
  • Manoj Pant
  • Sugandha Huria

Abstract

This paper revisits the relationship between unskilled immigration and skilled wage in the context of the BREXIT episode. Our simple general equilibrium model introduces a household sector, the inclusion of which shows that both return to capital and effective skilled wage may increase with a greater inflow of immigrants. This is a novel outcome in the theory of trade and factor flows. In addition, though technical progress in a skill‐intensive sector raises wage inequality, it no longer displaces traditional jobs. Here, the usual negative impact of unskilled immigration on the traditional sector is mitigated by increased returns to the unskilled workers.

Suggested Citation

  • Sugata Marjit & Manoj Pant & Sugandha Huria, 2020. "Unskilled immigration, technical progress, and wages—Role of the household sector," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 235-251, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:reviec:v:28:y:2020:i:1:p:235-251
    DOI: 10.1111/roie.12448
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    Cited by:

    1. Rashmi Ahuja & Sugata Marjit, 2022. "Liberalizing Trade and Capital Flows and the Wage Gap: Does Sequencing Matter?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 33(2), pages 375-389, April.
    2. Nivedita Mullick & Areej A. Siddiqui, 2021. "Economic Integration Agreements and Extensive Margin of Export: An Empirical Study of India," Working Papers 2155, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.
    3. Sugata Marjit & Gouranga Gopal Das, 2021. "Contact-Intensity, Collapsing Entertainment Sector and Wage Inequality: A Finite Change Model of Covid-19 Impact," CESifo Working Paper Series 9311, CESifo.

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    JEL classification:

    • F11 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Neoclassical Models of Trade
    • F20 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - General

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