The Riches of the Melting Pot: How Diversity in Metropolitan Areas Helps Grow the Wages of Low and High-Wage Workers

Author: 
New American Economy
Date of Publication: 
January, 2017
Source Organization: 
New American Economy

 

The Riches of the Melting Pot: How Diversity in Metropolitan Areas Helps Grow the Wages of Low and High-Wage Workers—an analysis of data from the U.S. Census Bureau—tracks individual workers in 160 U.S. metropolitan areas between 1991 and 2008, and measures how their wages change as their cities or workplaces become more diverse. Diversity, as defined by the authors, means that it is more likely that two people in a city or workplace, chosen at random, are from different countries. Metropolitan areas can become more diverse in multiple ways—by shrinking their native-born population, growing their foreign-born population, or absorbing immigrants from a wider variety of countries. The report shows that when diversity increases through immigration, meaningful wage benefits accrue to all workers—from the highest earners down to the lowest.

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Citation: 

New American Economy. (2017). The Riches of the Melting Pot: How Diversity in Metropolitan Areas Helps Grow the Wages of Low and High-Wage Workers. Retrieved from http://research.newamericaneconomy.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/NAE_Diversity_FINAL.pdf

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