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Estimating the Return to Training and Occupational Experience: The Case of Female Immigrants

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  • Cohen Goldner, Sarit

    (Bar-Ilan University)

  • Eckstein, Zvi

    (Reichman University)

Abstract

Do government provided training programs benefit the participants and the society? We address this question in the context of female immigrants who first learn the new language and then choose between working or attending government provided training. Although theoretically training may have several outcomes, most evaluations have focused on only one outcome of training: the expected wage. However, training might have no direct effect on wage, but, nevertheless, affect employment probability in higher paid jobs. In order to measure the return to government provided training, and overcome the above reservations, we formulate an estimable stochastic dynamic discrete choice model of training and employment. Our estimates imply that training has no significant impact on the mean offered wage in bluecollar occupation, but training increases the mean offered wage in white-collar occupation by 19 percent. Training also substantially increases the job offer rates in both occupations. Furthermore, counterfactual policy simulations show that free access to training programs relative to no training could cause an annual earnings growth of 31.3 percent. This large social gain (ignoring the cost of the program) comes mainly from the impact of training on the job offer probabilities and, consequently, on unemployment, and not, as conventionally thought, from the impact of training on potential earnings. Moreover, free access to training increases the average ex-ante expected present value of utility for a female immigrant at arrival (individual benefit) by 50 percent relative to the existing training opportunity.

Suggested Citation

  • Cohen Goldner, Sarit & Eckstein, Zvi, 2004. "Estimating the Return to Training and Occupational Experience: The Case of Female Immigrants," IZA Discussion Papers 1225, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
  • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp1225
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    Cited by:

    1. Sarit Cohen Goldner & Gil Epstein, 2014. "Age at immigration and high school dropouts," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 3(1), pages 1-20, December.
    2. Belzil, Christian, 2007. "The return to schooling in structural dynamic models: a survey," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(5), pages 1059-1105, July.
    3. de Grip, Andries & Pleijers, Astrid, 2019. "Workshop attendance as a mode of learning: Evidence from the Netherlands," ROA Research Memorandum 007, Maastricht University, Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market (ROA).
    4. Arbel, Yuval & Tobol, Yossef & Siniver, Erez, 2012. "Social Involvement and Level of Household Income among Immigrants: New Evidence from the Israeli Experience," IZA Discussion Papers 6416, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. M Daniele Paserman, 2013. "Do high-skill immigrants raise productivity? Evidence from Israeli manufacturing firms, 1990-1999," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 2(1), pages 1-31, December.
    6. Gil S. Epstein & Erez Siniver, 2012. "Can an ethnic group climb up from the bottom of the ladder?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 32(3), pages 2414-2441.
    7. Buchinsky, Moshe & Gotlibovski, Chemi & Lifshitz, Osnat, 2023. "Residential location and the male-female gap in labor market outcomes—a lesson from newcomers to israel," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    8. Carla Haelermans & Lex Borghans, 2012. "Wage Effects of On-the-Job Training: A Meta-Analysis," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 50(3), pages 502-528, September.
    9. Eskil Heinesen & Leif Husted & Michael Rosholm, 2013. "The effects of active labour market policies for immigrants receiving social assistance in Denmark," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 2(1), pages 1-22, December.
    10. Fabio Méndez & Facundo Sepúlveda & Nieves Valdés, 2016. "Legalization and human capital accumulation," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 29(3), pages 721-756, July.
    11. Cohen-Goldner, Sarit & Paserman, M. Daniele, 2011. "The dynamic impact of immigration on natives' labor market outcomes: Evidence from Israel," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(8), pages 1027-1045.
    12. Aldashev, Alisher & Thomsen, Stephan L. & Walter, Thomas, 2010. "Short-term training programs for immigrants: do effects differ from natives and why?," ZEW Discussion Papers 10-021, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    13. Matti Sarvimaki & Kari Hamalainen, 2010. "Assimilating Immigrants: The Impact of an Integration Program," RF Berlin - CReAM Discussion Paper Series 1019, Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RF Berlin) - Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration (CReAM).
    14. Chiswick, Barry R. & Rebhun, Uzi & Beider, Nadia, 2016. "Linguistic and Economic Adjustment among Immigrants in Israel," IZA Discussion Papers 10214, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Susumu Imai & Derek Stacey & Casey Warman, 2019. "From engineer to taxi driver? Language proficiency and the occupational skills of immigrants," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 52(3), pages 914-953, August.
    16. Stephan Thomsen & Thomas Walter & Alisher Aldashev, 2013. "Short-term training programs for immigrants in the German welfare system: do effects differ from natives and why?," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 2(1), pages 1-20, December.
    17. Stephan L. Thomsen & Thomas Walter, 2010. "Temporary Extra Jobs for Immigrants: Merging Lane to Employment or Dead‐End Road in Welfare?," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 24(s1), pages 114-140, December.
    18. Susumu Imai & Derek G. Stacey & Casey Warman, 2011. "From Engineer To Taxi Driver? Occupational Skills And The Economic Outcomes Of Immigrants," Working Paper 1275, Economics Department, Queen's University.
    19. Ulf Rinne, 2013. "The evaluation of immigration policies," Chapters, in: Amelie F. Constant & Klaus F. Zimmermann (ed.), International Handbook on the Economics of Migration, chapter 28, pages 530-552, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    20. de Grip, Andries & Pleijers, Astrid, 2019. "Workshop attendance as a mode of learning:," Research Memorandum 024, Maastricht University, Graduate School of Business and Economics (GSBE).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    immigration; occupation; training; transitions; unemployment; welfare;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J68 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Public Policy

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