Jobs, Crime, and Votes: A Short-run Evaluation of the Refugee Crisis in Germany

Markus Gehrsitz () and Martin Ungerer ()
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Markus Gehrsitz: University of Strathclyde

No 10494, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Millions of refugees made their way to Europe between 2014 and 2015, with over one million arriving in Germany alone. Yet, little is known about the impact of this inflow on labor markets, crime, and voting behavior. This article uses administrative data on refugee allocation and provides an evaluation of the short-run consequences of the refugee inflow. Our identification strategy exploits that a scramble for accommodation determined the assignment of refugees to German counties resulting in exogeneous variations in the number of refugees per county within and across states. Our estimates suggest that migrants have not displaced native workers but have themselves struggled to find gainful employment. We find very small increases in crime in particular with respect to drug offenses and fare-dodging. Our analysis further suggests that counties which experience a larger influx see neither more nor less support for the main anti-immigrant party than counties which experience small migrant inflows.

Keywords: voting; unemployment; refugees; immigration; crime (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 J15 J6 K4 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 48 pages
Date: 2017-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-lab, nep-law, nep-mig, nep-pol and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (35)

Published - published in: Economica, 2022, 89 (355), 592 - 626

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Working Paper: Jobs, crime, and votes: A short-run evaluation of the refugee crisis in Germany (2018)
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