A Double Disadvantage? Minority Group, Immigrant Status, and Underemployment in the United States

Abstract

Objective. This study documents the magnitude of four types of underemployment experienced by both native-born minority and ethnic immigrant male and female workers in the United States and tests a "double disadvantage" economic outcome hypothesis that minority workers tend to be channeled into secondarysector jobs and that immigrant workers face initial disadvantages in labor force assimilation. Method. Data for men and women aged 25-64 who are in the labor force and not attending school were derived from the 1990 Census Bureau Public Use Microdata Sample. Multinomial logistic regression procedures were used to estimate the effect of minority group membership and immigrant status on the odds of unemployment, part-time employment, working poverty, and job mismatch, relative to adequate employment. Results. Descriptive results showed greater overall underemployment among females than males. Blacks and Hispanics had higher unemployment and working-poverty rates compared to non-Hispanic whites and Asians, with job mismatch highest among Asians. Immigrant underemployment was greater than that of the native-born. Asians posted the largest disparity in immigrant versus native-born underemployment, and blacks had the smallest. Multivariate models showed that minority group effects were stronger than immigrant status effects in predicting underemployment. Increased likelihood of underemployment across the different minority groups versus non-Hispanic white workers was not fully accounted for by the expected influences of human-capital, demographic, industry, and occupational variables. Conclusion. The double disadvantage hypothesis of minority group and immigrant status is accepted only for Asian men and women with jobs mismatched to their skills and for Asian women,

A Double Disadvantage? Immigration, Gender, and Employment Status in Israel

“…Social norms and values, associated with the industrial development and modernity of country of origin, denote family priorities and the role of women at work versus at home. As several studies have shown (De Jong and Madamba 2001;Raijman and Semyonov 1997;Reimers 1985), substantial interaction takes place between geocultural background and socio-demographic characteristics in relation to labor force activity in the new country. Immigrant women from less developed countries experience greater decline in labor-force participation than do their women counterparts from advanced industrial economies, although the differentials narrow as time in the host country increases.…”

“…Up to my knowledge, less than a dozen studies have focused on gender gaps in employment status, or labor force participation, among recent immigrants (Baker and Benjamin 1997;Boyd 1984;Boyle et al 2001;Kats 1982) or observed differences across origin groups within a single country (Antecol 2000;De Jong and Madamba 2001;Raijman and Semyonov 1997). The findings of this research reveal considerable variations among immigrant groups and destination countries.…”

Neighborhood disadvantage, individual-level socioeconomic position and physical function: A cross-sectional multilevel analysis

“…47,49 This investigation is the first-known study to examine cross-level interactions epidemiological studies. [50][51][52] For instance, people with disability who live outside major cities may fare worse than their counterparts living in major cities, or people with no disability who live outside major cities. 50 These findings suggest that while individual-and neighborhoodlevel socioeconomic disadvantage may affect physical function independently, they also interact with one another to impact physical function in a collective way.…”

Migração interestadual e desigualdade racial: evidência do Estado de São Paulo

“…Portanto, embora a imigração em muitos casos beneficie as elites, a classe média e a economia em geral -por exemplo, estimulando o comércio e o mercado imobiliário, e permitindo a continuação de atividades produtivas que de outra maneira teriam sido deslocadas para outros países -ela tende a prejudicar os trabalhadores mais pobres e os menos qualificados do país de acolhimento, sobretudo as minorias (Catanzarite, 2003;Cherry, 2003;Johannsson;Shulman, 2003;Mason, 2014). No caso dos Estados Unidos, as pesquisas geralmente se concentram nas consequências da imigração para a população negra, embora algumas pesquisas também focalizem os efeitos para os latinos (descendentes de latino-americanos) nascidos nos EUA ou para os imigrantes que chegaram em levas anteriores (Jong;Madamba, 2001;Cherry 2003;Hall;Farkas, 2008;Roth, 2012).…”