Labor market discrimination and sorting: Evidence from South Africa

Martin Abel

No 205, SALDRU Working Papers from Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town

Abstract: Using a unique data set of classified ads in South Africa, I explore whether employers discriminate against immigrants in the hiring process. I develop a quasi-experimental method to estimate discrimination exploiting variation in the applicant pool composition due to the timing of postings. Consistent with a tournament models in which immigrants are penalized, I find that both foreigners and natives benefit from being pooled with foreign job seekers. Next, I test whether discrimination affects search behavior. Controlling for location fixed effects, I find suggestive evidence for sorting: immigrants search further away and higher discrimination in the residential area is positively correlated with the decision to search in different suburbs.

Date: 2017
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-mig and nep-ure
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Journal Article: Labor Market Discrimination and Sorting: Evidence From South Africa (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ldr:wpaper:205

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