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  • Title: Labor force participation, household composition and sponsorship among Southeast Asian refugees.
    Author: Bach RL, Carroll-seguin R.
    Journal: Int Migr Rev; 1986; 20(2):381-404. PubMed ID: 12267857.
    Abstract:
    This article investigates more fully the complexity of refugees' participation in the US labor market and possible sources of variations in their experience. The article focuses specifically on the labor market experiences of Southeast Asian refugees. The data used in this analysis are derived from 2 national surveys of more than 7000 Southeast Asian refugees conducted in 1982 and 1983 by the US Office of Refugee Resettlement. Although there are encouraging signs of progress, especially rapid in the earliest years, Southeast Asian refugees are persistently 10-15% less likely to be in the labor force than the US population. Once in the labor force, like other ethnic minorities, they also experience considerably higher levels of unemployment. Household structure, both in terms of the presence of children and in kinship relations, has a strong and varied impact on participation. Residence in California also constrains both men's and women's behavior independently of the refugees' background skills or household structures. Even English language proficiency is sensitive to its social evaluation by employers and the community. The most novel outcome of this analysis involves the influence that type of sponsorship has on refugees' economic behavior. According to these results, sponsorship reflects the impact of the formation of an ethnic community that is primarily working class, concentrated in low wage jobs, and participating at a relatively high rate in public assistance programs. The networks it has to offer are considerably less well placed economically than in other forms of incorporation.
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