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Article
Publication date: 12 June 2017

Rajendra Prasad Subedi and Mark Warren Rosenberg

The foreign-born skilled immigrant population is growing rapidly in Canada but finding a job that utilizes immigrantsskills, knowledge and experience is challenging for them…

Abstract

Purpose

The foreign-born skilled immigrant population is growing rapidly in Canada but finding a job that utilizes immigrantsskills, knowledge and experience is challenging for them. The purpose of this paper is to understand the self-perceived health and social status of skilled immigrants who were working in low-skilled jobs in the service sector in Ottawa, Canada.

Design/methodology/approach

In this qualitative study, semi-structured interviews with 19 high-skilled immigrants working as taxi drivers and convenience store workers in the city of Ottawa, Canada were analysed using a grounded theory approach.

Findings

Five major themes emerged from the data: high expectations but low achievements; credential devaluation, deskilling and wasted skills; discrimination and loss of identity; lifestyle change and poor health behaviour; and poor mental and physical health status.

Social implications

The study demonstrates the knowledge between what skilled immigrants expect when they arrive in Canada and the reality of finding meaningful employment in a country where international credentials are less likely to be recognized. The study therefore contributes to immigration policy reform which would reduce barriers to meaningful employment among immigrants reducing the impacts on health resulting from employment in low-skilled jobs.

Originality/value

This study provides unique insights into the experience and perceptions of skilled immigrants working in low-skilled jobs. It also sheds light on the “healthy worker effect” hypothesis which is a highly discussed and debated issue in the occupational health literature.

Details

International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-9894

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 June 2021

Farveh Farivar, Roslyn Cameron and Jaya A.R. Dantas

Drawing on embeddedness theory, we examine how skilled immigrants' perceived brain-waste affects their social embeddedness. Social embeddedness facilitates the acquisition of host…

1325

Abstract

Purpose

Drawing on embeddedness theory, we examine how skilled immigrants' perceived brain-waste affects their social embeddedness. Social embeddedness facilitates the acquisition of host country-specific human capital, which, in return, can accelerate the transfer of immigrants' human capital in the workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 397 skilled immigrants in Australia participated in this study. We applied a set-theoretic approach to decode the complexity and interplay among the key concepts used in this study.

Findings

We found the impacts of psychological workplace wellbeing and workplace discrimination on social embeddedness differ between skilled immigrants who experience perceived brain-waste and skilled immigrants whose skills were recognized by employers. The results suggest that job satisfaction is the most critical factor contributing to social embeddedness among skilled immigrants who did not report brain-waste. Furthermore, we found that married skilled male immigrants who reported brain-waste still could embed socially if they did not directly experience workplace discrimination.

Originality/value

The majority of previous studies have compared skilled immigrants with their local-born colleagues, but we compared two groups of skilled migrants in the current study. We adopted fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis to test how unique configurations of several variables can ease their social embeddedness into the host society.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. 51 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 June 2019

Elham Sayyad Abdi, Helen Partridge, Christine Bruce and Jason Watson

The purpose of this paper is to provide an understanding of skilled immigrants’ lived experience of using information to learn about their new setting.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an understanding of skilled immigrants’ lived experience of using information to learn about their new setting.

Design/methodology/approach

Thematic analysis was conducted on a qualitative data set collected through 16 semi-structured interviews with newly arrived skilled immigrants in Australia.

Findings

The study uncovered six different themes of experiencing using information to learn among skilled immigrants. The themes, presented as a framework, explain skilled immigrants learn about their new life through: attending to shared stories by others; getting engaged; researching; comparing and contrasting past and present; being reflective; and being directly educated.

Research limitations/implications

The study presents the theory-to-practice translation approach of “information experience design” that enables the enactment of theoretical understanding of information research.

Originality/value

The study invites, encourages and enables information professionals to take part in interdisciplinary conversations about integration of skilled immigrants in their host countries. Using the presented framework in the study, information professionals will be able to explain skilled immigrants’ learning about their new setting from an information lens. This provides information professionals an opportunity to work with immigration service stakeholders to help them incorporate the presented framework in their real-world practice and service. Such practice and services are of potential to support newly arrived skilled immigrants to become more information literate citizens of the host society who can participate more fully in their host society.

Book part
Publication date: 28 March 2006

Michael Ben-Gad

I construct a set of dynamic macroeconomic models to analyze the effect of unskilled immigration on wage inequality. The immigrants or their descendants do not remain unskilled …

Abstract

I construct a set of dynamic macroeconomic models to analyze the effect of unskilled immigration on wage inequality. The immigrants or their descendants do not remain unskilled – over time they may approach or exceed the general level of educational attainment. In the baseline model, the economy's capital supply is determined endogenously by the savings behavior of infinite-lived dynasties, and I also consider models in which the supply of capital is perfectly elastic, or exogenously determined. I derive a simple formula that determines the time discounted value of the skill premium enjoyed by college-educated workers following a change in the rate of immigration for unskilled workers, or a change in the degree or rate at which unskilled immigrants become skilled. I compare the calculations of the skill premiums to data from the US Current Population Survey to determine the long-run effect of different immigrant groups on wage inequality in the United States.

Details

The Economics of Immigration and Social Diversity
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-84950-390-7

Article
Publication date: 1 February 2022

Joshua K. Bedi and Shaomeng Jia

The finding that immigrants are more likely to self-employ than natives has been consistently shown by different researchers. At the same time, many call for the prioritization of…

Abstract

Purpose

The finding that immigrants are more likely to self-employ than natives has been consistently shown by different researchers. At the same time, many call for the prioritization of high-skilled immigration as they believe low-skilled entrepreneurs are not particularly innovative or high-growth-oriented. The purpose of this study is to critically review and synthesize the current literature on immigrant self-employment, paying particular attention to low-skilled immigrant entrepreneurship and the popular policy recommendation that high-skilled immigrants should be prioritized.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors survey the existing literature on immigrant self-employment and discuss recurring data issues, how those issues have or have not been addressed, as well as how these data issues impact the validity of policy recommendations that favor high-skilled immigrants and disfavor low-skilled immigrants. In particular, the authors examine how length of stay in the host country and host country institutions impact immigrant self-employment, especially low-skilled immigrant self-employment. The authors also point out unintended consequences of low-skilled immigration.

Findings

The authors find data issues significantly impact the potential justifications behind calls to favor high-skilled immigrants. In particular, many researchers underestimate the positive impacts of low-skilled immigrant self-employment by not accounting for institutions and length of stay in the host country. The authors conclude with policy recommendations that prioritize high-skilled immigration should be re-examined in light of recurring omitted variable biases within previous studies and evidence of a number of positive unintended consequences associated with low-skilled migration.

Originality/value

The authors review current literature and discuss how important confounding variables, like the number of years an immigrant entrepreneur has lived in a host country and the institutions of a host country, make common policy recommendations suggesting prioritization of high-skilled immigration problematic. The authors also discuss potential solutions to these data issues, ways these issues have been solved already, and possible ways forward. Finally, after considering the literature, the authors offer our own set of policy recommendations.

Details

Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2045-2101

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 August 2018

Saba Colakoglu, Dilek G. Yunlu and Gamze Arman

The purpose of this paper is to uncover career-related issues that high-skilled female immigrants face and their strategies for rebuilding their careers upon migration for a…

1341

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to uncover career-related issues that high-skilled female immigrants face and their strategies for rebuilding their careers upon migration for a diverse range of reasons including following a spouse, furthering education and self-initiated expatriation.

Design/methodology/approach

Using grounded theory to explore this topic, the authors performed 14 in-depth interviews with female immigrants that fit pre-determined inclusion criteria for high-skilled (e.g. educated, gainfully and professionally employed). The study context of immigration is the USA, and the authors performed interviews with high-skilled immigrants from Turkey – an underrepresented nation in the US migrant population.

Findings

Content analysis of in-depth interviews revealed five primary theoretical themes that captured the career experiences of these individuals: non-linear career entry, career orientation, strong commitment and will to succeed, socialization patterns at work and support network. Integrating these findings with theories on adult learning, the authors developed an experiential learning model of career reconstruction among high-skilled immigrants.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the global mobility literature by developing an experiential learning theory of careers and taking a gendered perspective to the career experiences of high-skilled female immigrants. It answers the questions: what are the individual and situation factors associated with career success among high-skilled female immigrants? and what is the process that high-skilled immigrants go through to rebuild their careers?

Details

Journal of Global Mobility: The Home of Expatriate Management Research, vol. 6 no. 3/4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-8799

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 December 2019

Seong Hee Kim

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether natives’ attitudes toward immigration is associated with an influx of high- and low-skilled immigrants. The current research…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether natives’ attitudes toward immigration is associated with an influx of high- and low-skilled immigrants. The current research focuses on selected 20 OECD countries as destination countries.

Design/methodology/approach

A pseudo-panel based on age cohort is constructed to control for the potential unobservable individual characteristics. The random effects and within estimators (where applicable) are applied in the panel-data setting.

Findings

Regression results indicate that natives’ attitudes depend on their labor market exposure and skill type. Low-skill immigrant inflows are negatively associated with natives’ attitudes, but the magnitude is reduced proportionally to their share of the high skilled. The association between immigrant flows and attitudes is particularly strong for the prime-age cohorts, which can be explained by the labor market competition mechanism.

Research limitations/implications

Given the data limitations, not all destination countries could be analyzed but only selected OECD countries. However, this situation has resulted in the sample destination countries sharing similar characteristics with advanced economies.

Originality/value

Although the majority of previous studies are based on survey questions on attitudes toward immigrants with respective skill type, the current study focuses on the effects of the actual immigration flows. Natives’ attitudes respond sensitively to the actual changes in the number of migrants. The selection of OECD countries makes the characteristics of the destination countries substantially homogeneous.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. 41 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 March 2009

Guillermina Jasso

This paper aims to examine ethnicity among highly skilled immigrants to the USA.

1046

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine ethnicity among highly skilled immigrants to the USA.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper examines five classic components of ethnicity – country of birth, race, skin color, language, and religion – among persons admitted to legal permanent residence in the USA in 2003, as principals in the three main employment categories (EB‐1, EB‐2, and EB‐3), using data collected in the US New Immigrant Survey.

Findings

The visa categories have distinctive ethnic configurations. India dominates EB‐2, European countries and Canada EB‐1. The ethnicity portfolio contains more languages than religions. Language is shed before religion, and religion may not be shed at all, except among the ultra highly skilled of EB‐1. Highly skilled immigrants are mostly male; they are not immune from lapsing into illegality; they have a shorter visa process than their cohortmates; smaller proportions than in the cohort overall intend to remain in the USA. Larger proportions in EB‐2 and EB‐3 sent remittances than in the cohort overall. A little measure of assimilation – using dollars to describe earnings in the country of last residence, even when requested to use the country's currency – suggests that highly skilled immigrants are more likely to “think in dollars” than their cohortmates.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is like an aerial reconnaissance. It is necessary to now go under the ledges and into the caves.

Originality/value

The data used are the first ever collected on a probability sample of new legal immigrants to the USA. It is expected that many researchers will use these data to generate valuable new knowledge.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. 30 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 20 June 2003

Madeline Zavodny

Whether immigrants are positively or negatively self-selected is much disputed. Whereas most previous studies have addressed this question by comparing the earnings of immigrants

Abstract

Whether immigrants are positively or negatively self-selected is much disputed. Whereas most previous studies have addressed this question by comparing the earnings of immigrants to those of U.S. natives, this analysis uses occupation to examine the skill level of immigrants relative to their home country population. Data on the occupational distribution of individuals granted legal permanent residence in 1995 indicate that the proportion of immigrants in skilled occupations is related to the corresponding proportion in source countries but not necessarily to the return to skill and other economic factors in the country of origin.

Details

Worker Well-Being and Public Policy
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-84950-213-9

Book part
Publication date: 19 January 2023

Sunaina Gowan

Not just in low-wage and low-skilled jobs but also further up in the corporate ladder, Australian corporations have culturally diverse workforces. Due to talent shortages in…

Abstract

Not just in low-wage and low-skilled jobs but also further up in the corporate ladder, Australian corporations have culturally diverse workforces. Due to talent shortages in fields such as medicine, engineering, and education, the Australian economy is reliant on skilled immigrants. As a result, the demand to increase and diversify the workforce is growing, and Australia’s government has focused its efforts on attracting a diverse pool of skilled immigrants. As Australia’s ethnic diversity grows, businesses that want to stay competitive will find that having a diverse workforce provides them an advantage.

Details

The Ethnically Diverse Workplace: Experience of Immigrant Indian Professionals in Australia
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80382-053-8

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