Immigrants Equilibrate Local Labor Markets: Evidence from the Great Recession

A-Tier
Journal: American Economic Journal: Applied Economics
Year: 2016
Volume: 8
Issue: 1
Pages: 257-90

Authors (2)

Brian C. Cadena (not in RePEc) Brian K. Kovak (Carnegie Mellon University)

Score contribution per author:

2.011 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

This paper demonstrates that low-skilled Mexican-born immigrants' location choices respond strongly to changes in local labor demand, which helps equalize spatial differences in employment outcomes for low-skilled native workers. We leverage the substantial geographic variation in labor demand during the Great Recession to identify migration responses to local shocks and find that low-skilled Mexican-born immigrants respond much more strongly than low-skilled natives. Further, Mexican mobility reduced the incidence of local demand shocks on natives, such that those living in metro areas with a substantial Mexican-born population experienced a roughly 50 percent weaker relationship between local shocks and local employment probabilities. (JEL E32, J15, J23, J24, J61, R23)

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:aea:aejapp:v:8:y:2016:i:1:p:257-90
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-25