Mixed Migration, Forced Displacement and Job Outcomes in South Africa

Professor Christopher Baum (Economics and Social Work) and Dr. Shoghik Hovhannisyan (BC PhD, 2015), an economist at the International Finance Corporation, are among the authors of a recently released World Bank study. The study, titled "Mixed Migration, Forced Displacement and Job Outcomes in South Africa", presents quantitative analysis from census data and labor market surveys that concludes that immigrant workers enhance the job prospects and wages of domestic workers. Their findings stand in contrast to some prior work that suggests that domestic workers are harmed by economic immigration: a belief that underlies recent xenophobic episodes in a country with high unemployment. These results will be presented to the South African government at an upcoming conference.