American Economic Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
Does the US Labor Market Reward International Experience?
American Economic Review
vol. 104,
no. 5, May 2014
(pp. 250–54)
Abstract
A typical strategy for measuring the returns to international experience—comparing the earnings of returning migrants to comparable non-migrants—has been criticized for not adequately accounting for self-selection. I suggest an alternative, testing whether individuals born beyond US borders, but into US citizenship, earn more in US labor markets relative to counterparts born on US soil. Those born abroad to US citizens did not self-select an international experience. Using the ACS, I find that the US market rewards international experience, especially in occupations that value creativity and innovation. Women, in particular, are handsomely rewarded for international human capital.Citation
Pozo, Susan. 2014. "Does the US Labor Market Reward International Experience?" American Economic Review 104 (5): 250–54. DOI: 10.1257/aer.104.5.250Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- J31 Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
- J61 Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers