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Portuguese Migrants in the German Labour Market: Performance and Self-Selection

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  • Bauer, Thomas
  • Pereira, Pedro Telhado
  • Vogler, Michael
  • Zimmermann, Klaus F

Abstract

Using a large new data set, we analyse the labour market performance of Portuguese workers in Germany. While previous work compares wages and characteristics of migrants only to those of natives, we match the data also with an equivalent survey from the sending country. We find that Portuguese migrants as a whole are negatively selected with the exception of blue-collar workers that are the greatest group among them. The observation that Portuguese migrants earn more than comparable Germans indicates that they have higher unobservable skills. Our results confirm the effectiveness of the German guest worker system.

Suggested Citation

  • Bauer, Thomas & Pereira, Pedro Telhado & Vogler, Michael & Zimmermann, Klaus F, 1998. "Portuguese Migrants in the German Labour Market: Performance and Self-Selection," CEPR Discussion Papers 2047, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:2047
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    1. Schmidt, Christoph M. & Stilz, Anette & Zimmermann, Klaus F., 1994. "Mass migration, unions, and government intervention," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(2), pages 185-201, October.
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    3. Veall, Michael R & Zimmermann, Klaus F, 1994. "Goodness of Fit Measures in the Tobit Model," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 56(4), pages 485-499, November.
    4. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Schooling, Experience, and Earnings," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number minc74-1, February.
    5. George J. Borjas, 2021. "Self-Selection and the Earnings of Immigrants," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Foundational Essays in Immigration Economics, chapter 4, pages 69-91, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    6. George J. Borjas, 1994. "The Economics of Immigration," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 32(4), pages 1667-1717, December.
    7. Bauer, Thomas & Zimmermann, Klaus F, 1995. "Integrating the East: The Labour Market Effects of Immigration," CEPR Discussion Papers 1235, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Schooling and Earnings," NBER Chapters, in: Schooling, Experience, and Earnings, pages 41-63, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Bauer Thomas & Zimmermann F., 1996. "Gastarbeiter und Wirtschaftsentwicklung im Nachkriegsdeutschland," Jahrbuch für Wirtschaftsgeschichte / Economic History Yearbook, De Gruyter, vol. 37(2), pages 73-108, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Kahanec, Martin & Zimmermann, Klaus F., 2008. "Migration and Globalization: Challenges and Perspectives for the Research Infrastructure," IZA Discussion Papers 3890, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Bönke Timm & Neidhöfer Guido, 2018. "Parental Background Matters: Intergenerational Mobility and Assimilation of Italian Immigrants in Germany," German Economic Review, De Gruyter, vol. 19(1), pages 1-31, February.
    3. De Coulon, Augustin & Wadsworth, Jonathan, 2008. "On the relative gains to immigration: a comparison of the labour market position of Indians in the USA, the UK and India," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 19634, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Duleep, Harriet & Liu, Xingfei & Regets, Mark, 2018. "Country of Origin, Earnings Convergence, and Human Capital Investment: A New Method for the Analysis of U.S. Immigrant Economic Assimilation," GLO Discussion Paper Series 247, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    5. Zaiceva, Anzelika, 2006. "Self-Selection and the Returns to Geographic Mobility: What Can Be Learned from the German Reunification "Experiment"," IZA Discussion Papers 2524, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Michael S. Rendall & Susan W. Parker, 2014. "Two Decades of Negative Educational Selectivity of Mexican Migrants to the United States," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 40(3), pages 421-446, September.
    7. Olga Lazareva, 2015. "Russian migrants to Russia: assimilation and local labor market effects," IZA Journal of Migration and Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 4(1), pages 1-25, December.
    8. Olga Lazareva & Konstantin Sonin, 2008. "Russian Migrants to Russia: Choice of Location and Labor Market Outcomes," Working Papers w0117, New Economic School (NES).
    9. Bender, Stefan & Seifert, Wolfgang, 1998. "Lokale Arbeitsmärkte für ausländische Arbeitskräfte in Deutschland : berufliche Veränderungsprozesse am Beispiel dreier idealtypischer Arbeitsmarktregionen (Local labour markets for foreign workers in," Mitteilungen aus der Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 31(4), pages 661-673.
    10. Duleep, Harriet & Liu, Xingfei & Regets, Mark, 2014. "Country of Origin and Immigrant Earnings, 1960-2000: A Human Capital Investment Perspective," IZA Discussion Papers 8628, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. Bender, Stefan & Seifert, Wolfgang, 1998. "Lokale Arbeitsmärkte für ausländische Arbeitskräfte in Deutschland : berufliche Veränderungsprozesse am Beispiel dreier idealtypischer Arbeitsmarktregionen (Local labour markets for foreign workers in," Mitteilungen aus der Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 31(4), pages 661-673.
    12. Augustin Coulon & Jonathan Wadsworth, 2010. "On the relative rewards to immigration: a comparison of the relative labour market position of Indians in the USA, the UK and India," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 147-169, March.
    13. Augustin de Coulon & Matloob Piracha, 2002. "Self-Selection and the Performance of Return Migrants: The Case of Albania," Studies in Economics 0211, School of Economics, University of Kent.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    labour market performance of migrants; Migration Policy; Portuguese Migration; self-selection of migrants;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

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