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Earnings of Indian Male Migrants in the Australian Labour Market

Author

Listed:
  • Phil Lewis

    (University of Canberra)

  • Bilal Rafi

    (University of Canberra)

Abstract

The number of Indian students and migrants in Australia has increased considerably from the mid-2000s, partly as a result of changes in migration policy which made it much easier to gain a visa to work and settle in Australia. This paper examines the earnings of Indian migrants in the Australian labour market controlling for educational attainment and demographic variables for Australian born Indian born, and other foreign born migrants from English speaking and non-English speaking backgrounds. The results suggest that the returns to educational qualifications in the Australian labour market for Indian born male migrants are markedly lower as compared to Australians and other migrants in general. These findings are consistent with the major hypothesis of this paper that Indian males in the labour market are not utilising their post-secondary qualifications to their full extent either due to divergent motivations that treat the possession of a post-secondary qualification as a secondary consideration, or the quality of their qualifications may be perceived to be of poorer quality. Both explanations have serious implications for Australia’s skilled migration policy and the labour market prospects of Indian migrants and workers in Australia.

Suggested Citation

  • Phil Lewis & Bilal Rafi, 2014. "Earnings of Indian Male Migrants in the Australian Labour Market," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 17(3), pages 257-275.
    • Handle: RePEc:ozl:journl:v:17:y:2014:i:3:p:257-275
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Bilal Rafi, 2015. "The Employment and Occupational Outcomes of Indian Male Migrants in the Australian Labour Market," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 18(1), pages 113-129.

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

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