IX Southern Labor Studies Conference
October 26-29, 1995

by YOLANDA C. PADILLA, Ph.D. (Social Work and Sociology, University of Michigan), Assistant Professor, School of Social Work, University of Texas at Austin and Research Associate, Population Research Center, 1925 San Jacinto, Austin, Texas 78712; e-mail a ddress: ypadilla@mail.utexas.edu

S U M M A R Y: "Are the Earnings of Mexican Immigrants in the 1990s Affected by Determinants of Migration and Residency Plans"

This paper reports on the preliminary findings of a study on the labor market outcomes of Mexican immigrants conducted under a grant from the Social Science Research Council Committee for Public Policy on Contemporary Hispanic Issues.
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors that explain the detrimental effects of immigrant status on the current labor market performance of Mexicans in the U.S. It focuses on whether the determinants of immigration and the residency plans of i mmigrants have any effect on their labor market outcomes, specifically the earnings, of Mexican immigrants.

EMPIRICAL AND THEORETICAL CONTEXT

Research on the labor market performance of Mexican immigrants in the late 1970s and in the 1980s suggested that Mexican immigrant groups in the U.S. maintained much lower earnings throughout most of their working lives than their native counterparts (Bea n and Tienda, 1987; Borjas, 1990). A study by the present author on a more recent cohort of Mexican immigrants reveals that this trend is still evident in the 1990s. Mexican immigrants earn 39 percent less than their native counterparts.

Furthermore, the research also shows that the lower earnings of Mexican immigrants do not simply reflect their level of assimilation or a lower socioeconomic status relative to U.S. born Mexicans, two theories which had borne support in studies of earlier cohorts of Mexican immigrants. First, the theory of assimilation (typically measured as recency of immigration) obtains only partial support. The longer an immigrant has lived in the U.S., the greater his earnings. However, even individuals who have resi ded in the U.S. for over 25 years earn about 25 percent less than native born Mexican origin men in the United States. Secondly, when controlling for other socioeconomic determinants, the findings show that the differential between immigrants and native b orn Mexicans is still very large: immigrants earn 32 percent less than U.S. born Mexicans.

Clearly, immigrant status does not simply represent level of assimilation or a lower socioeconomic status. This study will attempt to analyze several specific supply-side and motivational factors which may in effect place Mexican immigrants at a disadvant age relative to their native born counterparts. Several background factors associated with immigration will be investigated: (a) reason for immigration, (b) residency plans, (b) the proportion of education obtained in the U.S., and (d) citizenship.

DATA AND METHODOLOGY

A cross-sectional quantitative analysis of the first wave of Panel Study of Income Dynamics/Latinos National Political Survey (PSID/LNPS) 1989 and 1990 data will be conducted. The PSID/LNPS includes an oversample of Hispanics, thus providing a adequate nu mber of cases for statistical analysis. The sample for the analysis will be restricted to male heads of household of Mexican origin, who were of working age (between the ages of 18 and 64), for a total sample of approximately 687 men. A linear regression model of annual earnings will be estimated.

FINDINGS

The findings show that earnings are not significantly affected reasons for immigration, residency plans, or the proportion of education obtained in the U.S.. However, citizens earn significantly more than non-citizens controlling for other background char acteristics, including length of stay in the U.S. and nativity.