Much of the existing research on the economic assimilation of post-1965
immigrants relative to the native born has revolved around earnings. The earnings
differential is a helpful measure of inequality as it indicates the amount of resources an
individual or group has for socio-economic well-being, but it still limits our complete
understanding of immigrants’ economic incorporation and more specifically, their labor
market experiences. Added to this, assimilation is not a uniform process. I evaluate one
of the key assertions of segmented assimilation theory by examining national origin
patterns of labor market integration, for post-1965 Latin American and Caribbean
immigrants’ changes in employment status over the period 1980 to 2000. Segmented
assimilation theory posits that assimilation can be downward, especially in disadvantaged
contexts, conventional as in upward mobility, or partial. Using repeated cross-sections of
the 5% IPUMS USA decennial Census samples of 1980, 1990 and 2000, the study
assesses changes in the likelihood of being unemployed or out of the labor force as
opposed to employed over the course of 1980 to 2000, for pooled cross-sections of
working age immigrants relative to US non-Hispanic Whites and native minorities.
Emphasis is placed on measuring the effect of national origin and duration of residence
on employment status while controlling for the Census year, demographic and human
capital factors. Results show that all foreign born have lower risks of nonparticipation
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than the native majority and native minorities over their course of US residence. Higher
labor force participation, however, does not translate into higher likelihoods of full labor
market integration. Differentials in labor market integration actually follow a downward
assimilation pattern for foreign born Mexicans and Guatemalans/Hondurans/Nicaraguans
as their risks of unemployment increase with longer US residence and are similar to
native minorities of Hispanic origin. Foreign born Jamaicans’ risks of unemployment also
mirror those of native Hispanics, thus suggesting a propensity for downward assimilation
as well. Foreign born Cubans appear most likely to assimilate conventionally as their
risks of unemployment approach parity with the native majority over their duration in the
US. Hence, upward and downward assimilation trajectories in labor force attachment
depend on nationality.