South-South migration and the labor market: Evidence from South Africa

Giovanni Facchini, Anna Maria Mayda and Mariapia Mendola

No 351, Development Working Papers from Centro Studi Luca d'Agliano, University of Milano

Abstract: Using census data for 1996, 2001 and 2007 we study the labor market effect of immigration to South Africa. The paper contributes to a small but growing literature on the impact of South-South migration by looking at one of the most attractive destinations for migrant workers in Sub-Saharan Africa. We exploit the variation - both at the district level and at the national one - in the share of foreign-born male workers across schooling and experience groups over time. At the district level, we estimate that increased immigration has a negative and significant effect on natives' employment rates - and that this effect is more negative for skilled and white South African native workers - but not on total income. These results are robust to using an instrumental variable estimation strategy. At the national level, we find that increased immigration has a negative and significant effect on natives total income but not on employment rates. Our results are consistent with outflows of natives to other districts as a consequence of migration, as in Borjas (2006).

Keywords: Immigration; Labor market effects; South Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F22 J61 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50
Date: 2013-04-24, Revised 2013-04-24
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-dev, nep-int and nep-mig
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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Related works:
Journal Article: South–South migration and the labor market: evidence from South Africa (2018)
Working Paper: South-South migration and the labor market: Evidence from South Africa (2013)
Working Paper: South-South Migration and the Labor Market: Evidence from South Africa (2013)
Working Paper: South-South Migration and the Labor Market: Evidence from South Africa (2012)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:csl:devewp:351

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