Social Science Research
Volume 40, Issue 5, 2011, Pages 1402-1418

Do less-skilled immigrants work more? Examining the work time of Mexican immigrant men in the United States (Article)

Lin K.-H.*
  • a University of Massachusetts, 200 Hicks Way, Amherst, MA 01003-9278, United States

Abstract

Using data from the US Current Population Surveys 2006-2008, I examine the weekly work hours of Mexican immigrants. Mexican immigrant workers on average work 2-4. h less than non-Hispanic whites per week, which contradicts the popular portrait of long immigrant work hours. Four mechanisms to explain this gap are proposed and examined. Results show that the work time disparity between non-Hispanic white and Mexican immigrant workers is explained by differences in human capital, ethnic concentration in the labor market, and selection process into employment. English proficiency has limited effect on work time after location in labor market is specified, while the effect of citizenship status remains robust. © 2011 Elsevier Inc.

Author Keywords

Work time Immigration Labor market Assimilation

Index Keywords

[No Keywords available]
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-79960919314&doi=10.1016%2fj.ssresearch.2011.04.006&partnerID=40&md5=d04f67b536ce044328b848fc85b96c70
DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2011.04.006
ISSN: 0049089X
Cited by: 4
Original Language: English