Occupational and wage assimilation of immigrants in the spanish labour market

Autores/as

Palabras clave:

inmigrantes, desigualdad, movilidad ocupacional, asimilación salarial

Resumen

The integration and assimilation of immigrants is a complex process that can lead to increased inequality if appropriate measures are not implemented. This paper focuses on Spain, a country without a strong tradition of migration that has received large flows in a short period. It examines the initial job insertion, occupational mobility and wage assimilation of immigrants from a gender perspective over a 15-year period. This extended period allows for a better understanding of this process, as immigrants gain sufficient work experience. Moreover, the results show whether new migrant-receiving countries reproduce similar patterns to those with a longer history of immigration. Using the Continuous Working Life Survey, mobility tables are constructed to study absolute and relative mobility. The evolution of the ratio between the average contribution bases of immigrants and natives over the period allows to analyse wage assimilation. The research concludes that immigrants occupy positions at the lower end of the occupational ladder and suffer a wage gap compared to natives, which is higher among men. The existence of a segmented labour market limits migrants' opportunities for upward occupational mobility and wage increases. Contrary to expectations, this wage gap narrows slowly with the length of residence, but persists over time.

Descargas

Los datos de descargas todavía no están disponibles.

Biografía del autor/a

Begoña Eguía Peña, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU)

Begoña Eguía Peña. Profesora Titular de Universidad. Departamento de Políticas Públicas e Historia Económica, Facultad de Economía y Empresa. Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU). Lehendakari Aguirre 83, 48015 Bilbao (Vizcaya). Email: bego.eguia@ehu.eus. Sus principales líneas de investigación son la distribución de la población en el territorio y la interacción entre demografía y economía. En particular, la población inmigrante y su integración en el mercado laboral. Colabora con empresas y organismos públicos a través de contratos y proyectos de investigación regionales, nacionales y europeos, dando lugar a publicaciones en revistas de reconocido prestigio internacional. (Orcid: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1852-1624)

Leire Aldaz Odriozola, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU)

Leire Aldaz Odriozola. Profesora Titular de Universidad. Departamento de Políticas Públicas e Historia Económica, Facultad de Economía y Empresa. Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU). Plaza Oñati 1, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián (Guipúzcoa). Email: leire.aldaz@ehu.eus. Su actividad investigadora se centra en el análisis de la innovación tecnológica, la dinámica demográfica de la población nativa e inmigrante y la desigualdad en el mercado laboral. Esta última incluye temas como nichos laborales, segregación ocupacional e impacto de la llegada de inmigrantes en las condiciones laborales de los nativos. Su participación en proyectos de investigación y conferencias internacionales o nacionales le ha llevado a publicar en revistas científicas internacionales. (Orcid: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7960-5410)

Ane Aizpurua Esnaola, Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU)

Ane Aizpurua Esnaola. Profesora Laboral de Universidad. Departamento de Economía Financiera, Facultad de Economía y Empresa. Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU). Plaza Oñati 1, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián (Guipúzcoa). Email: ane.aizpurua@ehu.eus. Su actividad investigadora está centrada principalmente en el análisis de la segregación ocupacional por origen y sexo en el mercado laboral de la Unión Europea. Además, estudia el impacto de la inmigración en la mano de obra nativa. Ha contado con un contrato de investigación en un proyecto europeo (Horizon 2020) (Orcid: http://orcid.org/0009-0003-6756-840X ).

Citas

Adsera, A., & Chiswick, B.R. (2007). Are there gender and country of origin differences in immigrant labor market outcomes across European destinations? Journal of Population Economics 20, 495–526. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-006-0082-y

Aleksynska, M., & Algan, Y. (2010). Assimilation and Integration of Immigrants in Europe. Discussion Paper No. 5185. IZA - Institute of Labor Economics. https://docs.iza.org/dp5185.pdf

Ahonen, E.Q., Porthé, V., Vázquez, M.L., García, A.M., López-Jacob, M.J., Ruiz-Frutos, C., Ronda-Pérez, E., Benach, J., & Benavides, F.G. (2009). A qualitative study about immigrant workers' perceptions of their working conditions in Spain. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 63(11), 936-942. https://doi.org/10.1136/jech.2008.077016

Agudelo, A., Gil, D., Ronda, E., Porthé, V., Paramio, G., García, A.M., & Garí, A. (2009). Discrimination, work and health in immigrant populations in Spain, Social Science & Medicine, 68(10), 1866-1874 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.02.046

Albertín, P. (2025). Mujeres migrantes en economía sumergida: experiencias de trabajo doméstico y de cuidados en Cataluña. Castalia - Revista de Psicología de la Academia 43, 113-131. https://doi.org/10.25074/07198051.43.2838

Amuedo-Dorantes, C., & De la Rica, S. (2007). Labour Market Assimilation of Recent Immigrants in Spain. British Journal of Industrial Relations 45(2), 257-284. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8543.2007.00614.x

Arranz, J.M., Carrasco, C., & Massó, M. (2017). La movilidad laboral de las mujeres inmigrantes en España (2007-2013). Revista Española de Sociología 26(3), 329-344. https://doi.org/10.22325/fes/res.2017.26

Aysa-Lastra, M., & Cachón-Rodríguez, L. (2013). Determinantes de la movilidad ocupacional segmentada de los inmigrantes no comunitarios en España. Revista Internacional de Sociología 71(2), 383-413. https://doi.org/10.3989/ris.2012.05.519

Borjas, G.J. (1985). Assimilation, Changes in Cohort Quality, and the Earnings of Immigrants. Journal of Labor Economics 3(4), 463-489. JSTOR. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2534922

Borjas, G.J. (1995). Assimilation and Changes in Cohort Quality Revisited: What Happened to Immigrant Earnings in the 1980s? Journal of Labor Economics 13(2), 201-245. https://doi.org/10.1086/298373

Brücker, H., Glitz, A., Lerche A., & Romiti, A. (2021). Occupational Recognition and Immigrant Labor Market Outcomes. Journal of Labor Economics, 39(2), 497-525. https://doi.org/10.1086/710702

Card, D. (2005). Is the New Immigration Really so Bad? The Economic Journal 115(507), 300-323. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0297.2005.01037.x

Chiswick, B. (1978). The Effect of Americanization on the Earnings of Foreign-born Men. Journal of Political Economy 86(5), 897-921. https://doi.org/10.1086/260717

Chiswick, B., Cohen, Y., & Zach, T. (1997). The Labor Market Status of Immigrants: Effects of the Unemployment Rate at Arrival and Duration of Residence. ILR Review 50(2), 289-303. https://doi.org/10.1177/001979399705000206

Clark, K., & Lindley, J. (2005). Immigrant Labour Market Assimilation and Arrival Effects: Evidence from the Labour Force Survey. Sheffield Economic Research Paper Series, No. 2005004. University of Sheffield. https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/id/eprint/9911/1/SERP2005004.pdf

Constant, A., & Massey, D.S. (2003). Self-selection, earnings, and out-migration: A longitudinal study of immigrants to Germany. Journal of Population Economics 16, 631-653. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-003-0168-8

Dueñas, D., Iglesias, C., & Llorente, R. (2016). ¿Por qué las mujeres no se distribuyen de forma homogénea en el mercado de trabajo español? El “efecto rechazo” y el “efecto atracción”. El Trimestre Económico 83(330), 339-369. https://doi.org/10.20430/ete.v83i330.202

Dustmann, C. (1993). Earnings adjustment of temporary migrants. Journal of Population Economics 6, 153-168. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00178559

Fernández, C., & Ortega, C. (2008). Labor market assimilation of immigrants in Spain: employment at the expense of bad job-matches? Spanish Economic Review 10, 83-107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10108-007-9032-4

Friedberg, R.M. (1992). The Labor Market Assimilation of Immigrants in the United States: The Role of Age at Arrival. Brown University.

Gorodzeisky, A., & Semyonov, M. (2017). Labor force participation, unemployment and occupational attainment among immigrants in West European countries. PLoS ONE, 12(5): e0176856. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0176856

Gorshkov, A. (2024). Job ladders and labour market assimilation of immigrants. Labour Economics 90, 102594. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2024.102594

Hawthorne, L. (2010). How Valuable is “Two-Step Migration”? Labor Market Outcomes for International Student Migrants to Australia. Asian and Pacific Migration Journal, 19(1), 5-36. https://doi.org/10.1177/011719681001900102

Lee, T., Peri, G., & Viarengo, M. (2020). The Gender Aspect of Immigrants' Assimilation in Europe. Discussion Paper No. 13922. IZA - Institute of Labor Economics. https://docs.iza.org/dp13922.pdf

Luthra, R., Platt, L., & Salamo?ska, J. (2018). Types of Migration: The Motivations, Composition, and Early Integration Patterns of “New Migrants” in Europe. International Migration Review 52 (2), 368-403. https://doi.org/10.1111/imre.12293

OECD (2019). Recruiting Immigrant Workers: Canada 2019, Recruiting Immigrant Workers, OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/4abab00d-en

Okoampah, S. (2016). Estimating earnings assimilation of immigrants to Germany: Evidence from a double cohort model. Ruhr Economic Papers, No. 630. Leibniz Information Centre for Economics. https://doi.org/10.4419/86788732

Palencia-Esteban, A., & Del Río, C. (2020). The earnings effects of occupational segregation in Europe: The role of gender and migration status. Working Papers 533, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality. ECINEQ. https://www.ecineq.org/milano/WP/ECINEQ2020-533.pdf

Peri, G., & Rutledge, Z. (2020). Revisiting Economic Assimilation of Mexican and Central Americans Immigrants in the United States. Discussion Paper No. 12976. IZA - Institute of Labor Economics. https://docs.iza.org/dp12976.pdf

Pischke, J.S. (1992). Assimilation and the Earnings of Guest workers in Germany. ZEW Discussion Papers, No. 92-17, Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung. https://www.econstor.eu/handle/10419/29366

Price, S. (2001). The employment adjustment of male immigrants in England. Journal of Population Economics 14, 193-220. https://doi.org/10.1007/s001480050165

Rodríguez-Planas, N. (2012). Wage and Occupational Assimilation by Skill Level: Migration Policy Lessons from Spain. IZA Journal of European Labor Studies 1 (8). https://doi.org/10.1186/2193-9012-1-8

Roman, G., Berasategi, N., Idoiaga, N., & Legorburu, I. (2024). Migrant Perceptions of Their Social Inclusion, Social Networks, and Satisfaction with Life in Northern Spain. Societies 14(1), 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc14010003

Schieckoff, B., & Sprengholz, M. (2021). The labor market integration of immigrant women in Europe: context, theory, and evidence. SN Social Sciences 1(276). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43545-021-00279-3

Shorrocks, A. F. (1978). The measurement of mobility. Econometrica 46(5), 1013-1024. https://doi.org/10.2307/1911433

Simón, H., Ramos, R. & Sanromá, E. (2014). Immigrant Occupational Mobility: Longitudinal Evidence from Spain. European Journal of Population 30(2), 223-255. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10680-014-9313-1

Vidal-Coso, E. (2019). Employment Trajectories of recent Immigrants in Switzerland in Steiner, I. and Wanners, P. (eds), Migrants and Expats: The Swiss Migration and Mobility Nexus. IMISCOE Research Series, SpringerOpen. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05671-1_6

Publicado

2025-07-31

Cómo citar

Eguía Peña, B., Aldaz Odriozola, L., & Aizpurua Esnaola, A. (2025). Occupational and wage assimilation of immigrants in the spanish labour market. Revista Prisma Social, (50), 141–166. Recuperado a partir de https://revistaprismasocial.es/article/view/5832