Unemployment of immigrants and natives over the business cycle: evidence from the Austrian labor market

We analyze differences in unemployment between natives and immigrants over the business cycle. Using matched employer-employee data for Austria, we find that immigrants' unemployment rate and flows into and out of unemployment are significantly more sensitive to labor market shocks than those of comparable natives. This is particularly true for immigrants from outside the European Economic Area. We find that our results are not driven by a potential selection of immigrant workers into specific industries or temporary jobs.