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The wage gap will always trump immigration barriers, World Bank official says
No matter what roadblocks are put in place, at the end of the day it’s economics and in particular wage gaps that drive immigration flows, a World Bank expert said Thursday.
Caglar Ozden, lead economist in the bank’s development and research group, outlined 10 ideas to strengthen migration policies, including employer-driven immigration programs, a path to citizenship or residency for temporary workers, evenly distributed refugee resettlement and assistance and re-training programs for native populations.
“However you cut it, it’s all about wages. Even refugee flows are determined by labor market demands at the end of the day,” Ozden said during a World Bank panel discussion. “But when you look at the top migration policymakers, there are very few economists. It’s dominated by soldiers and lawyers, who have a different mindset.”
Ozden argued that labor market demand is more powerful than policies to restrict migration. He said that after the United States ended its Bracero Program that welcomed temporary Mexican migrant workers in 1964, illegal Mexican immigration rapidly increased, keeping total Mexican migration at similar levels. Read more…