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Title: Ethnic-Occupational Niches: Evidence from the Age of Mass Migration
Citation Type: Miscellaneous
Publication Year: 2024
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Abstract: Why are some ethnic or immigrant groups vastly over-represented in certain oc- cupations? I posit that these ethnic-occupational niches are driven by immigrants’ pre- migration skills, as well as social networks of fellow countrymen in the niched occu- pation. Turning to the United States during the Age of Mass Migration, I show that between 1850 and 1940, 46% of all immigrants were in niches. The presence and inten- sity of over-representation varied across nationality, time, and occupation. Digitizing new data on immigrant pre-arrival occupation and merging it to the historical US cen- suses, I find both skill background and social networks have a significant, positive effect on the occupational choice of newly arrived immigrants. But, the latter domi- nates the former, and a novel instrument for social networks of one’s countrymen in a niched occupation confirms these results and the primacy of social networks in caus- ing niches. By providing a better understanding of what drives niches, my findings inform their consequences for immigration and labor markets today.
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Authors: Locke, Elijah
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Data Collections: IPUMS USA - Ancestry Full Count Data
Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Migration and Immigration
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