Paths to Mobility: A Longitudinal Evaluation of Earnings Among Latino/a DACA Recipients in California

Abstract

Undocumented immigration status is a structural barrier to socioeconomic mobility. The regularization of legal status may therefore promote the socioeconomic mobility of formerly undocumented immigrants. The 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program provided protection against deportation and access to work authorization for eligible undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children. While studies using cross-sectional data find that DACA led to improved socioeconomic status, no studies have examined the socioeconomic status of DACA recipients over time and few have disaggregated among groups of DACA recipients. Drawing from one of the only longitudinal studies of DACA recipients, we use growth curve models to estimate individuals’ wage trajectories from the year prior to DACA receipt up to 77 months post-DACA receipt among Latino/a DACA participants in California. In this sample, DACA is associated with improved earnings trajectories for recipients, compared with nonrecipients. Among DACA recipients, there is variation in earnings growth by stage of the life course, as measured by age and educational attainment. Notably, DACA tenure appears to be particularly beneficial for individuals who attain DACA at earlier ages and who earn college degrees. This study contributes to our understanding of the role of immigration laws and policies in structuring immigrant integration and socioeconomic mobility in the United States.

The Life-Course Timing of Legalization: Evidence from the DACA Program

“…Moreover, their analysis did not consider employment outcomes and was restricted to a subset of DACA-eligible individuals who arrived before the age of 10. Patler, Hale, et al (2021) found that younger DACA recipients experienced faster wage growth compared with their older counterparts.…”

“…Moreover, their analysis did not consider employment outcomes and was restricted to a subset of DACA-eligible individuals who arrived before the age of 10. Patler, Hale, et al (2021) found that younger DACA recipients experienced faster wage growth compared with their older counterparts. In this article, we analyze data from the American Community Survey (ACS) data using a difference-in-differences-in-differences (DDD) design that exploits the arbitrariness of the eligibility criteria and the timing of the program to identify the differential age effects of DACA on the employment and education outcomes of younger and older DACA-eligible men and women of Mexican origin.…”

“…This disjuncture has socioeconomic consequences; for example, the inability to apply for financial aid could discourage high school students from going to college, and the inability to search openly on the job market could prevent job seekers from finding the jobs that best fit their skills and interests. Because the transition to adulthood sets the stage for later life socioeconomic outcomes, legal restrictions on work and school during the transition to adulthood can have lasting impacts on mobility and well-being (Gonzales et al 2018; Patler, Hale, and Hamilton 2021; Torres and Young 2016).…”

“…Studies show that DACA was associated with increased high school graduation, labor force participation, employment, wage growth, and hours worked but was also associated with lower enrollment in, and exiting from, postsecondary schools (Amuedo-Dorantes and Antman 2017; Hamilton, Patler, and Savinar 2020; Hsin and Ortega 2018; Patler, Hale, et al 2021; Pope 2016). Research shows that some DACA participants may have prioritized the opportunity to work over pursuing postsecondary education because they could not depend on the long-term stability of the program and therefore could not count on being able to find jobs commensurate with their schooling.…”

Politically Excluded, Undocu-Engaged: The Perceived Effect of Hostile Immigration Policies on Undocumented Student Political Engagement

“…Perceptions of one's legal vulnerability may also inform the extent to which one experiences and perceives exclusionary immigration policy contexts. DACA buffers undocumented youth against some of the most severe consequences of undocumented immigration status by altering their experiences of legal vulnerability; they are less likely to fear deportation and experience less financial strain (Enriquez & Millán, 2021;Gonzales et al, 2014;Patler et al, 2021). Receiving DACA reduces the risks associated with political participation and fosters identification with one's undocumented status, suggesting that DACA recipients' would be more likely to engage in public political activities that may reveal their immigration status (Katsiaficas et al, 2019) However, Mena Robles andGomberg-Muñoz (2016) find that the establishment of the program has opposing effects "at once stifling the urgency of comprehensive immigration reform and galvanizing efforts to expand and strengthen protections against deportation" (46).…”