John V. Winters (ISU)

John V. Winters (ISU)

Oct 28, 2021 - 3:40 PM
to Oct 28, 2021 - 5:00 PM

John WintersDescription: Labor-Public Economics Workshop: John V. Winters

Title: "Immigrant Self-Employment across the United States"

Abstract: Immigrant entrepreneurs are critical to regional and national economies. Immigrants in the U.S. have higher self-employment rates than natives, and immigrants have made outsized contributions as founders of numerous highly successful firms.  However, immigrant self-employment rates vary considerably across areas. This paper documents important differences in immigrant self-employment rates across the U.S.  Our main measure is the percentage of immigrant workers in an area who are self-employed; i.e., the self-employment rate for the foreign-born. Northern regions have especially low self-employment rates among their immigrant populations compared to other areas of the U.S. This relationship holds for numerous sub-samples of immigrants and is not driven by any particular group. The relationship persists after controlling for numerous individual and local area characteristics. The results have important implications about the location choices of immigrant entrepreneurs.

Location: 368A Heady Hall

Contact person: John Winters