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September 2006, Vol. 129,
No. 9
Labor force characteristics of second-generation Americans
Abraham Mosisa
This article documents the labor market characteristics of second-generation Americans compared with those of the "third-and-higher" generation. Second-generation Americans are native-born Americans who have either one parent or both parents who are foreign born. Americans of the third-and-higher generation are native-born Americans whose parents are both native born.1
This article examines the labor force status, occupations, and earnings of second- and third-and-higher-generation workers by a variety of demographic characteristics including age, sex, race or ethnicity,2 educational attainment, and family status. (See box on page 11.) It also looks at the labor market situation of the two groups that make up the second generation—persons whose parents are both foreign born (foreign parentage) and persons who have one native-born parent and one foreign-born parent (mixed parentage). The article uses data from the 2005 Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to the Current Population Survey (CPS).3
This excerpt is from an article published in the September 2006 issue of the Monthly Labor Review. The full text of the article is available in Adobe Acrobat's Portable Document Format (PDF). See How to view a PDF file for more information.
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Footnotes
1
Native-born persons include those born in the United States,
Puerto Rico, or an outlying area of the United States (such as Guam or the U.S.
Virgin Islands), and persons who were born in a foreign country but who had at
least one parent who was a U.S. citizen. Native-born persons with either parent
(or both) born in a foreign country are considered second generation.
Native-born persons with neither parent foreign bom are considered
third-and-higher generation. The foreign born are considered first generation.
2 In this article, the usual BLS practice of counting Hispanics (an ethnic group) as part of the race category to which they belong has not been followed; instead of including Hispanics among the race groups whites, blacks, and Asians, in this article they are shown separately. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race, including white, black, Asian, and some other race. In regular BLS practice, Hispanic-origin groups are included in both the white, Asian, and black population groups.
3 The Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement, formerly known as the Annual Demographic Survey, contains the basic monthly demographic and labor force data, plus additional data on work experience, income, non-cash benefits, and migration. More detailed information regarding ASEC can be accessed from the Census Bureau Web site at the following Internet address: http://www.census.gov/apsd/techdoc/cps/cpsmar04.pdf
Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey
Related Monthly Labor Review articles
Foreign-born
workforce, 2004: a visual essay—Jul.
2006.
Role of foreign-born workers in the U.S.
economy, The—May 2002.
How do immigrants fare in the U.S. labor market?—Dec.
1992.
Ellis island a welcome site? Only after years of reform—Jul.
1986.
Foreign-born workers
in the U.S. labor market: a special survey.—Jul.
1985.
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