• Immigrants’ occupational mobility—Down and back up again

    The occupational status of most immigrants initially declines but then increases

    Aslan Zorlu, September 2016
  • Circular migration

    Why restricting labor mobility can be counterproductive

    In the popular immigration narrative, migrants leave one country and establish themselves permanently in another, creating a “brain drain” in the sending country. In reality, migration is typically temporary: Workers migrate, find employment, and then return home or move on, often multiple times. Sending countries benefit from remittances while workers are abroad and from enhanced human capital when they return, while receiving countries fill labor shortages. Policies impeding circular migration can be costly to both sending and receiving countries.
  • Public works programs in developing countries have the potential to reduce poverty

    The success of public works programs in reducing poverty depends on their design and implementation—in practice, they do better as safety nets

    Laura Zimmermann, May 2014
    Public works programs in developing countries can reduce poverty in the long term and help low-skilled workers cope with economic shocks in the short term. But success depends on a scheme’s design and implementation. Key design factors are: properly identifying the target population; selecting the right wage; and establishing efficient implementation institutions. In practice, rationing, corruption, mismanagement, and other implementation flaws often limit the effectiveness of public works programs.
  • The Chinese labor market, 2000–2016

    The world’s second largest economy has boomed, but a rapidly aging labor force presents substantial challenges

    Junsen Zhang Jia Wu, May 2018
    China experienced significant economic progress over the past few decades with an annual average GDP growth of approximately 10%. Population expansion has certainly been a contributing factor, but that is now changing as China rapidly ages. Rural migrants are set to play a key role in compensating for future labor shortages, but inequality is a major issue. Evidence shows that rural migrants have low-paying and undesirable jobs in urban labor markets, which points to inefficient labor allocation and discrimination that may continue to impede rural–urban migration.
  • Who benefits from the minimum wage—natives or migrants?


    Madeline Zavodny, December 2014
  • Should countries auction immigrant visas?

    Selling the right to immigrate to the highest bidders would allocate visas efficiently but might raise ethical concerns

    Madeline Zavodny, November 2015
    Many immigrant destination countries face considerable pressure to change their immigration policies. One of the most innovative policies is auctioning the right to immigrate or to hire a foreign worker to the highest bidders. Visa auctions would be more efficient than current ways of allocating visas, could boost the economic contribution of immigration to the destination country, and would increase government revenues. However, visa auctions might weaken the importance of family ties in the migration process and create concerns about fairness and accessibility. No country has yet auctioned visas.
  • How does grandparent childcare affect labor supply?


    Giulio Zanella, February 2017
  • Post-enlargement emigration and new EU members’ labor markets


    Anzelika Zaiceva, August 2014
  • The impact of aging on the scale of migration

    Older people migrate less than young, yet with population aging, mobility of elderly and specialized workers may increase

    Anzelika Zaiceva, November 2014
    Population aging will continue in the future, in both developed and developing countries. This may lead to lower migration, since the desire to migrate declines later in the life cycle. In addition, indirect labor demand effects may also reduce migration. However, migration of the elderly, return retirement migration, as well as mobility of certain specialist workers such as health and longer-term care providers, may increase. Also, in a family context, the emigration of children may have significant consequences for the elderly left behind, both in terms of poverty risk and health care.
  • Labor market consequences of the college boom around the world


show more