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An in-depth analysis of the emigration of skilled labour. Latvia

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  • Hazans, Mihails

Abstract

Emigrant survey data confirm a substantial university diploma drain from Latvia to various EU/EFTA destinations during 2000-2014. The share of tertiary-educated among emigrants further increased during their stay in the host countries, reaching, by 2014, 45 %. The share of university graduates among Latvian emigrants in each of the destinations under inspection was higher than among their age peers in Latvia. By 2014, two out of five highly educated Latvian nationals (or former nationals) aged under 25 and over one-third of their highly educated compatriots aged 25-34 left Latvia between 2000 and 2014. Both overall and in each age group, highly educated people were more likely to emigrate than their medium-educated counterparts. During (and, except for the UK, also after) the crisis, diploma drain and brain drain from Latvia were more intensive than before, reflecting a rise of general disappointment and non-economic reasons for emigration among the highly educated and the future-oriented. Those not motivated by economic push factors account for the largest part of the increase in the number of highly educated emigrants during the post-crisis periods.The loss of skilled labour caused by emigration from Latvia is largely permanent. Probability to return within five years falls with completed education level among all emigrants and with study level among tertiary students abroad. Highly educated emigrants are overrepresented in Science, Mathematics, IT, and Medicine, on one hand, and in Humanities and Arts on the other. The post-crisis skilled emigrants feature a larger incidence of overqualification and other types of brain waste, but the incidence of brain waste varies significantly across education levels and fields of study and across destination countries. High-educated graduates of Sciences, Mathematics, IT, and Health feature the lowest over-qualification and skill underutilization rates. The paper provides evidence that emigration has contributed to a shortage of high- and medium-skilled professionals educated in Science, Mathematics, ICT, and Medicine, as well as experienced engineers and technicians.

Suggested Citation

  • Hazans, Mihails, 2018. "An in-depth analysis of the emigration of skilled labour. Latvia," MPRA Paper 118493, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:118493
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Elsner, Benjamin, 2013. "Emigration and wages: The EU enlargement experiment," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(1), pages 154-163.
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    6. Benjamin Elsner, 2013. "Does emigration benefit the stayers? Evidence from EU enlargement," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 26(2), pages 531-553, April.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    emigration; brain drain; brain waste; field of study;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • F66 - International Economics - - Economic Impacts of Globalization - - - Labor
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

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