More legalized immigration could boost the United States economy, if reform is properly designed. Data show immigrants start more businesses than native-born Americans and typically work in different jobs. Allowing more of these immigrants to work in the U.S., while ensuring they cannot receive welfare, would improve long-term economic growth.
A new issue brief published Tuesday by Economics21 at the Manhattan Institute outlines the numerous arguments for allowing more legal immigration. The brief was authored by Diana Furchtgott-Roth, the director of Economics21 and former chief economist at the Department of Labor. (Full disclosure: I provided research assistance for the brief in my last job.)
Immigrants complement rather than replace U.S. workers. In the U.S. economy, most native-born workers are considered medium-skilled workers, who have some college education. On the other hand, immigrants are often low- and high-skilled workers. Most lack a high school diploma and pursue manual labor; the rest tend to have advanced degrees and pursue academic research work. Effectively, the U.S. labor force is a puzzle and immigrants fill in missing pieces at either end.
For instance, 24 percent of the native-born U.S. workers are employed in sales positions, compared to just 17 percent of immigrant workers. Meanwhile, 25 percent of U.S. immigrant workers are employed in service jobs, compared to 17 percent of native-born workers. Sales positions are typically considered medium-skilled, whereas service jobs are somewhat low-skilled.
Even within the low- and high-skill categories, immigrants are working in different jobs than native-born workers. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show 3.9 percent of immigrant workers are employed in computer and mathematical careers, compared to 2.5 percent of native-born workers. On the low end of the skill spectrum, 8.3 percent of immigrants are employed in construction jobs, compared to 3.4 percent of native-born workers.
Immigrants also display more entrepreneurial qualities than the typical American. “Some 44 percent of high-tech Silicon Valley businesses had at least one immigrant founder,” wrote Furchtgott-Roth. “In 2012, U.S. engineering and technology firms founded by immigrants in the 2006–12 period employed approximately 560,000 workers, generating $63 billion in sales.” Immigrant entrepreneurs who will create jobs should be fast-tracked for approval into the U.S.
Furchtgott-Roth goes on to outline what effective immigration reform would look like, starting with flexibility. The system must be able to adapt to a constantly changing labor force. Foreign-born students educated in American universities should be granted visas that can later become green cards. Low-skill seasonal workers must be allowed to travel and work in and out of the country without losing legal status. However, immigrants should not be eligible for federal welfare programs that discourage work, such as food stamps or Obamacare subsidies.
Immigrants are not stealing jobs from Americans. They are contributing to the U.S. economy in ways typical Americans could not. This does not mean they should be allowed across U.S. borders en masse or that illegal immigration should be tolerated, but it does recommend expanding opportunities for productive immigrants to make a living legally in the U.S.
