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The skills of Polish emigrants: Evidence from PIAAC

Author

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  • Nicola Brandt

    (OECD)

  • Patrizio Sicari

    (OECD)

Abstract

Based on the OECD data from the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) this paper sheds light on the skills of migrants. In line with earlier research the data show that migrants from Poland are more likely to have a tertiary degree than peers at home, but they often work in elementary professions abroad that do not match these high qualifications. This may well be at least partly a language issue, as migrants from Poland resemble migrants from other low-income countries in that their numeracy and literacy skills in the language of their host country is markedly lower than the average across all PIAAC participants, migrants or not. This gap is smaller, though, when looking only at migrants who report having been tested in a language that they use often and master well. The data reveal an interesting difference with migrants from higher-income countries, as their test results do not differ from the average, although they face the same language issues as other migrants. The reason may well be that only migrants from low-income countries can hope to earn higher wages abroad even if they work in low-skill professions, while migrants from higher-income countries need to master the language of their host country to do well. In fact, Polish migrants earn higher wages than their peers who stayed at home, even though they are particularly often overqualified. Les compétences des émigrants polonais : résultats de l'enquête PIAAC Sur la base des données de l’Évaluation des compétences des adultes (PIAAC) ce papier illustre les compétences des migrants. Conforme à des recherches antérieurs, les données montrent que les migrants de la Pologne ont plus souvent un diplôme de l’enseignement supérieure que leurs pairs qui sont restés dans leur pays, mais souvent ils travaillent dans des professions élémentaires qui ne requièrent pas un tel niveau de qualifications. Ceci pourrait être dû, pour le moins en partie, à des problèmes linguistiques, dans la mesure où les migrants polonais ont, dans les langues des pays d’accueil, des compétences en littératie et numératie qui sont bien plus basses que pour la moyenne de tous les participants au test PIAAC, migrants ou non, ce qui les rapproches des migrants d’autres pays à bas revenus. Cependant, cette différence est plus petite quand on considère uniquement les migrants qui affirment avoir été testé dans une langue qu’ils utilisent souvent et qu’ils maitrisent bien. Les données révèlent une différence intéressante avec les migrants des pays à hauts revenus, dont les résultats dans les tests de littératie et numératie ne sont pas différents de la moyenne, même s’ils sont confrontés aux mêmes difficultés de langage que d’autres migrants. Ceci pourrait être dû au fait que seul les migrants des pays à bas revenus peuvent espérer de gagner mieux à l’étranger que dans leur pays, même s’ils travaillent dans des professions peu qualifiés, alors que les migrants des pays à haut revenus doivent maîtriser la langue de leur pays d’accueil pour avoir un meilleur niveau de vie que dans leur pays d’origine. Au fait, les migrants polonais gagnent des salaires plus élevés que leurs pairs qui sont restés en Pologne, même s’ils sont souvent surqualifiés.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicola Brandt & Patrizio Sicari, 2016. "The skills of Polish emigrants: Evidence from PIAAC," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1332, OECD Publishing.
  • Handle: RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:1332-en
    DOI: 10.1787/5jlpq7tg3hxs-en
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    Cited by:

    1. Reegård, Kaja & Dębowski, Horacy, 2020. "Exit, voice or loyalty? VET stakeholders' response to large scale skilled emigration from Poland," International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET), European Research Network in Vocational Education and Training (VETNET), European Educational Research Association, vol. 7(3), pages 325-343.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    migration; skills;

    JEL classification:

    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • F24 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Remittances

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