Migration, allocation and re-allocation of immigrants in the regional labour markets

The aim of this paper is to analyse immigrants' mobility, both geographically and in terms of transitions into and out of the regional labour markets in Norway, in order to uncover the extent to which the workings of local labour markets contribute to integration versus exclusion. For comparisons, we have followed groups of Norwegian-born children of immigrants and the general population in and out of jobs in the same local labor markets through the same period. We also investigate whether migration contribute to change the labor market status of immigrants (like in job, in education, unemployed or outside labor force) using a "cohort-analysis" where we follow selected cohorts of immigrants through some years after they immigrated for the first time. To measure the specific effects of migration on change of labor market status, we have compared the labor market status achieved by those who relocate compared with corresponding groups in the population that does not move. Among immigrants, we have selected the cohorts in 2004 and 2008 and then followed each of them through the five subsequent years after recorded immigrated for the first time. The analyses are undertaken based on micro panel data featuring all immigrants in Norway, mostly recognized by their reason for immigration, from the turn of millennium to as recent year as possible. Particular attention is given to examining the mobility of immigrants and native control groups relative to the gross demand for labour in regional labour markets measured by means of a complete annual regional vacancy account for each of the years involved in the study. These data and methods also allow us to specify each person's labor market status in each year during the investigation period, thus also each person's annual change in employment status during the same period. Preliminary results show that immigrants have been of great importance in order to cover part of the demand for labor in the regional labor markets. On the other hand, the results indicate that immigrants have replaced some labor without immigrant background, alongside a tendency that new immigrants replace previous immigrants in the regional labor markets. Domestic migration has to a certain extent been beneficial for immigrants to obtain employment or to carry out an education. The effect of relocation as the ease of access varies, however, according to the immigrants' reason for immigration and their regional settlement patterns by centrality. Some groups have both immediate and permanent positive impact of moving with respect to work participation, while others may have positive short-term but not long-term effects or vice versa