People born outside of the United States represent a substantial and growing segment of the U.S. labour force that is, people with a job or looking for one, says the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
Among members of the foreign-born labour force in the United States in 2009, about half went to the US before 1994. In 2009, 40 per cent of the foreign-born labour force was from Mexico and Central America, and more than 25 per cent was from Asia.
In 2009, over half of the foreign-born workers from Mexico and Central America did not have a high school diploma or GED credential, as compared with just 6 per cent of native-born workers. In contrast, nearly half of the foreign-born workers from places other than Mexico and Central America had at least a bachelor’s degree, as compared with 35 per cent of native-born workers.
To a considerable extent, educational attainment determines the role of foreign-born workers in the labour market, says the CBO:
Source: Report, The Role of Immigrants in the U.S. Labor Market: An Update, Congressional Budget Office, July 2010.
For text: http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=11691
For more on Economic Issues: http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_Category=17
First published by the National Center for Policy Analysis, United States
FMF Policy Bulletin/ 10 August 2010
