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Author: Kau, James B.
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Hunt, Janet C.
Kau, James B.
Migration and Wage Growth: A Human Capital Approach
Southern Economic Journal 51,3 (January 1985): 697-710.
Also: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1057873
Cohort(s): Young Men
Publisher: Southern Economic Association
Keyword(s): Human Capital Theory; Job Search; Job Status; Migration; Wage Growth

Using panel data, migration is analyzed as an investment in human capital. The study focuses on two issues: (1) the economic motivation for migration and the reasons some movers receive high returns relative to others; and (2) a test of the human capital model explaining wage profiles of nonmovers, first-time, and repeat migrants. The NLS of Young Men 1966-1971 cross-section is employed to identify migrants and measure earnings for a 4-year interval after the location decision was made. Two procedures are used to determine whether migration pays relative to remaining in the current location. Findings support the idea that migration is properly treated as a human capital investment. Job status influences the monetary return to migration; distance moved is also positively correlated with migrant wages over the entire time period of the panel. Thus, wages clearly increase with the amount of expenditures or physical relocation and job search information. Repeat movers receive a 13% wage gain over nonmigrants and onetime movers.
Bibliography Citation
Hunt, Janet C. and James B. Kau. "Migration and Wage Growth: A Human Capital Approach." Southern Economic Journal 51,3 (January 1985): 697-710.