Returns to Human Capital and the Incorporation of Highly-Skilled Workers in the Public and Private Sector of Major Immigrant Societies: An Introduction

Across the major immigrant societies of the European Union, EU-15 countries, migrants and minorities still experience economic disadvantage. This failure of economic integration poses significant questions about the utilization of human capital, the management of mobility and the competitiveness of European labour markets (Cameron, 2011; OECD, 2017). Using a variety of datasets, this special issue pushes the debate forward in several ways. We will consider the integration outcomes of both migrants and second generation minority members in comparison to majority members. Labour market outcomes will be considered broadly: the probability of employment but also overqualification will be taken into account. Offering both analysis of single country cases and a cross-national comparison, the special issue will build a comprehensive picture of the factors associated with labour market disadvantage of migrant men and women, and their descendants—particularly, differential returns to foreign qualifications and educational credentials, differences between public and private sectors placements, and where possible the period of the economic crisis will be examined as well

An Examination of Ethnic Hierarchies and Returns to Human Capital in the UK

This article focuses on the returns to human capital of migrants and minorities in the UK. The question of whether skills and qualifications are properly utilized is very pertinent given the global competition for skilled migrants and the aim of European and British markets to attract such workers. Using data from Understanding Society (2009 to 2017) we find that there is a clear evidence of ethnic hierarchies with black Caribbean and black African minorities generally most disadvantaged, while other white UK-born have the best outcomes compared to the white British. Western migrants generally do very well, but new EU migrants have high levels of employment, and low returns to their qualifications and relatively high levels of over-qualification. Foreign qualifications are generally discounted, and more so for migrants with less certain legal status or low language skills. Public sector employment plays an important role and is associated with the higher economic placement of migrants and minorities in the UK. There are some worrying trends however. Highly skilled migrants, particularly black migrants as well as those from Eastern Europe, come in with high qualifications, but their jobs do not match their skill levels

Returns to Foreign and Host Country Qualifications: Evidence from the US on the Labour Market Placement of Migrants and the Second Generation

The integration of migrants in the US economic system is a central concern of policy-makers and scholars. A faster and smoother assimilation of valuable human capital would indeed benefit the labour market, increasing its efficiency. To investigate the integration of minorities and migrants in the US labour market, we employ data from the Current Population Survey from June 2016 (the primary source of labour force statistics in the US). We focus on the following ethnic groups: White, Black, Asian, and Other (a combination of Native Americans, Pacific and Mixed). For each ethnicity we consider if respondents are US born, 1st- or 2nd-generation of immigrant descent. Among 1st-generation migrants, we further differentiate between recent (in the country for 10 years or less) and long (in the country for more than 10 years) arrivals, as they are likely to have different levels of social capital and knowledge of the job market. We focus on three very relevant labour market outcomes: being employed, being employed in a public sector job and working in a professional or managerial position. Our results indicate better placement of individuals with tertiary degrees, an effect particularly important among women. Minorities in the public sector have made some important gains in terms of occupational attainment parity with the white majority

Ethnic and migrant penalties in job quality in the UK: the role of residential concentration and occupational clustering

Migrants and ethnic minorities in the UK are found to be disadvantaged in their access to work and earnings, but little is known about the characteristics of the jobs they occupy. This paper studies whether migrants and UK-born ethnic minorities attain similar jobs compared to their white British peers by clustering 17 indicators of job quality – covering intrinsic quality, work-life balance, monetary rewards, and employment conditions – into 5 latent classes. We find that non-white migrants are clustered in the worst jobs, while white migrants do relatively well. UK-born ethnic minorities are indeed less likely to work on the best jobs, but the type of disadvantage differs strongly between ethnic groups. Local deprivation drives some of the worse job quality of UK-born minorities while selection into lower-quality occupations and sectors drives much of the disadvantage of migrants. Co-ethnic support and particularly an economically stronger co-ethnic community in the locality can help shield ethnic minorities from the worst jobs, while ethnic niches in the occupation are associated with low-quality work. Finally, working in migrant-heavy occupations is associated with somewhat lower job quality; primarily affecting other migrants in a possible race to the bottom

Social Cohesion, Community Responses to Sustainability, Food Insecurity and Alternative Food Networks: the Case of CoFarm

In the last decade, the UK has experienced a proliferation of food banks and there are growing concerns about a rise in food insecurity (Loopstra et al., 2019, Loopstra et al., 2015). Even when access to food is adequate, diet quality can be poor, particularly in urban settings, where stress levels and lack of green spaces have been linked to an epidemic of obesity (Dinour et al., 2007). In this context, alternative food networks (AFNs) can play a major role in producing sustainable food, free from chemicals that may inhibit biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, such as pollination, natural pest control, and soil mineralisation, while at the same time increasing human wellbeing in urban areas. This report focuses on the experiences of the volunteers and stakeholders in one such local community-based agroecology (‘co-farming’) project in Cambridge, CoFarm Cambridge. CoFarm Cambridge is a wholly owned subsidiary of the CoFarm Foundation which was established in 2019 to help “bring people together to grow and share delicious, nutritious food and help build stronger, healthier ecosystems and communities” (Foundation, 2019). Following a community consultation in 2019, the farm was developed on a site off Barnwell Road, on 7-acres of privately-owned agricultural land in the Green Belt, next to Coldhams Common. The farm which so far relies almost exclusively on volunteer labour (with two paid horticulturalists on site) has been highly productive and in 2020 donated its entire produce, more than 4,5 tonnes of organically harvested fruit and vegetables, to 8 community food hubs in Cambridgeshire. As a result of their cofarming experience, volunteers reported greater involvement with community issues and heightened awareness of food justice issues. Thus, alongside other research on this topic (Cox et al., 2008), this study suggests that this form of engagement in an alternative food network can have important community benefits which can be further strengthened through communication and the active involvement of various community actors including volunteers themselves who can bring a lot of energy and knowledge to the project. Many reported that cofarming had been responsible for keeping them in good mental health during the lockdown which aligns with findings in the social prescribing literature (Chatterjee et al., 2018, Drinkwater et al., 2019, Husk et al., 2020). None of our interviewees questioned the decision for all produce to be donated during Covid19 emergency and in fact identified it as an important aspect of the cofarming activity

Receiving Country Investments and Acquisitions: How Migrants Negotiate the Adaptation to Their Destination

This article looks at the adaptation patterns of EU migrants—Bulgarian, Romanian, Italian and Spanish—in European markets, and uses several interviews of overseas non-EU migrants in the UK and Germany. The interaction of migrants with the receiving context is being considered. Drawing on several interviews with actual migrants and recruitment agents collected in the GEMM (Growth, Equal Opportunities, Migration and Markets) project in four major immigrant societies (Germany, UK, Spain and Italy), this article focuses on the receiving country acquisitions that facilitate the adaptation of migrants along their journeys. EU migrants have very different adaptation strategies to non-EU migrants, and this article comments on the differences observed as well as on the differences between them according to skill levels. Migrant adaptation challenges are acknowledged and studied dynamically. Thus, this unique data brings forward a multi-layered picture of the migrant adaptation process in Europe

Has multiculturalism failed in Britain?

This paper subjects the criticisms advanced against multiculturalism to empirical test. It asks whether ethno-religious groups lead ?parallel lives? and, in consequence, fail to integrate with the wider society. It looks in particular at the alleged corrosive effects of multiculturalism, specifically at the maintenance of an ethnic rather than a British identity, social distance from white people and willingness to contemplate violent protest, but finds that all groups alike have displayed major change across the generations in the direction of a British identity and reduced social distance. It finds no evidence that rates of intergenerational change have been slower among ethno-religious groups that have made successful claims for cultural recognition. In contrast, lower levels of integration are associated with perceptions of individual or group discrimination

Who benefits from host country skills? Evidence of heterogeneous labour market returns to host country skills by migrant motivation

Despite the extensive literature on the economic incorporation of migrants, little is known about the ways in which integration patterns differ across migrants depending on their motivation for migrating (e.g. economic, family, humanitarian). These initial motivations are associated with very different outcomes in the host society. Migrants generally do better in the labour market over time as they acquire host country human capital and labour market performance-relevant skills, but does the same pattern hold for each type of migrant? Policies that aim to increase overall labour market participation should take account of the increasingly diverse migrant population in Europe. We use detailed data from the 2008 and 2014 ad hoc modules of the EU Labour Force Survey to study labour market returns to host country-relevant skills, taking into account a range of individual and contextual factors. We show these patterns differ between recent migrants: higher host-country acquisitions are associated with improved labour market outcomes, but particularly for non-economic migrants. These findings are consistent over qualification levels and persist even within the more established migrant groups

The Lived Experiences of Migration: An Introduction

This editorial presents a general overview of the thematic issue “The Lived Experiences of Migration: Individual Strategies, Institutional Settings and Destination Effects in the European Mobility Process,” based on the rich qualitative data produced in the Growth, Equal Opportunities, Migration and Markets (GEMM) project. The qualitative component of the project focused on the ‘lived’ experiences of migration. The main contribution of the articles in this issue is to demonstrate the multiplicity of actors and structures involved in the migration process, and to recognize the important role that space plays in the life-trajectories of people on the move. Perceiving the migration process as a learning experience allows for a deeper look into the complex renegotiation of cultural and political boundaries that migrants experience in the destination

Ethnic Enclaves, Economic and Political Threat: An Investigation With the European Social Survey

This article examines the labor market outcomes and political preferences of majority, minority, or migrant individuals who report that they live in an ethnic enclave—a neighborhood with few majority residents. Politicians often proclaim that ethnic enclaves are problematic, but there is little rigorous examination of these claims. The ethnic composition of a local residential area can affect its inhabitants negatively by increasing conflict and competition (real or perceived) between groups. Majority members may feel their economic and political power questioned and think that the resources to which they are entitled have been usurped by newcomers. Migrants and minorities can be negatively impacted by isolation from the mainstream society, and their integration attempts can be hindered in ethnically concentrated local areas. Using data from the 2002 and 2014 waves of the European Social Survey, enriched with contextual data, we examine the impact of ethnic enclaves accounting for selection and compositional differences. We do not find evidence that minority concentrated areas impact negatively upon the economic outcomes of majority members, not even of those in precarious positions. We do however find that residence in enclaves is associated with greater propensity to vote for the far right and dissatisfaction with democracy for the majority group. Furthermore, there is an economic enclave penalty associated with the labor market insertion of migrants and the job quality of the second generation, and ethnic enclaves also increase the dissatisfaction with democracy among the second generation. We discuss our findings in light of the threat and contact literature