Deck 23: Immigration

Question 1

Which of the following statements are true Which are false Explain why the false statements are untrue.
a. More immigrants arrive to the United States each year illegally than legally.
b. The majority of legal immigrants are men.
c. Over half the new legal immigrants to the United States each year are from Mexico.
d. Most legal immigrants to the United States gain their legal status through employment-based preferences.

Answer 1

The chapter focuses on the economic issues related to immigrants in the United States. The following statement are required to be answered for being true or false.
a.
The given statement that more immigrants arrive to the United States each year illegally than legally is false. This is because, over years the United States has open its door for the immigrants across the world. The legal immigrant are the immigrants who are said to have permission of staying and working in the United States. The illegal immigrants are the immigrants who arrive illegally. The illegal immigrants also include the immigrants who have failed to leave after a specified period of time for which they were permitted.
b.
The given statement that the majority of the immigrants are men is false. This is because, according to the United States data for immigrants, 990553 were admitted as the legal permanent residents. Out of these, 55 percent were women and 45 percent were men. Thus, it the given statement is wrong as the majority of the immigrants are women.
c.
The given statement that over half the new legal immigrants to the United States each year are from Mexico is false. Though it is true that there are a large number of legal immigrants who have entered in the United States are from Mexico. However, in the Mexicans made up only 14 percent of the total immigrants.
d.
The given statement that most legal immigrants to the United States gain their legal status through employment-based preferences is false. This is because according to the data available for legal immigration by major category of admission in 2013, only 16% of immigrants get legal status on employment-based preferences. Most of the legal immigrants to the United States gain their legal status through family-sponsored (66%)

Question 2

Mexico has daily (rather than hourly)minimum wage laws. In 2013, the daily minimum wage in Mexico was about 60 pesos per day, and the exchange rate between Mexican pesos and U.S. dollars was about 12 pesos per dollar.
a. In 2013, what was the Mexican minimum daily wage in terms of dollars
b. Given that Mexican employees typically work 8-hour days, about how much per hour is the Mexican minimum wage in terms of dollars
c. In 2013, the federal minimum wage in the United States was $7.25 per hour. How many times larger was the hourly U.S. federal minimum wage than the hourly Mexican minimum wage
d. If unskilled workers have a tendency to migrate to where they can obtain the highest compensation for their labor, which country is more likely to be receiving low-skilled immigrants

Answer 2

Minimum wage rate:
a.
Find the minimum wage in Mexico in terms of dollars. In 2003, daily minimum wage in Mexico was about 60 pesos per day. Exchange rate between Mexican peso and U.S. dollar is 12 pesos per dollar. Then, number of dollars require to get a peso is
.
The 60 peso is equal to
per day.
Therefore, the Mexican minimum daily wage is
.
b.
Find the minimum wage of Mexican employees typically work 8-hour days in terms of dollars. A Mexican peso is equal to
dollars. Hence, the Mexican minimum daily wage is
.
The minimum wage per hour of Mexican employees in terms of dollars is as follows:
Hence, the minimum wage per hour of Mexican employees in terms of dollars is $0.63.
c.
The minimum wage in Mexico in terms of dollars is $0.63 per hour. Whereas, the Federal minimum wage in the United States is
per hour.
Hence, the hourly minimum wage decided by federal government is
times larger than the hourly Mexican minimum wage that is
.
d.
Since minimum wage in the U.S. is higher than the Mexico, the U.S. is more likely to receive low-skilled immigrants.

Question 3

Each year, the number of legal immigrants to the United States is ___________ the number of illegal immigrants.
a. Less than.
b. Equal to.
c. Greater than.
d. Less than, but only in most years, not every year.

Answer 3

Immigrants:
In the United States, the number of legal immigrants per year is over 1 million, whereas the number of illegal immigrants is only small number of hundred thousand. Hence, it is clear that the number of legal immigrants is greater than the number of illegal immigrants.
Hence, the correct option is 'c'.

Question 4

In what respect is the economic decision to move across international borders an investment decision Why do economic migrants move to some countries, but not to others Cite an example of an explicit cost of moving; an implicit cost of moving. How do distance and age affect the migration decision How does the presence of a large number of previous movers to a country affect the projected costs and benefits of subsequent movers

Question 5

Differences in productivity are usually the major force behind differences in wages and unit labor costs. Suppose that a single unskilled worker at a pottery factory in Mexico can produce 1 mug per hour. By comparison, suppose that a single unskilled worker at a pottery factor in the United States can produce 14 mugs per hour because more and better machinery generates higher labor productivity. The Mexican mugs and the American mugs are identical in quality and durability and sell for the same price.
a. If unskilled pottery workers are paid the local minimum wage in both countries, how much is the labor cost per mug for mugs produced in Mexico For mugs produced in the United States (Use the minimum wages from problem 1 and make all calculations in dollars.)
b. With regard to mug production, how much higher are labor costs per hour in the United States
c. With regard to mug production, how much higher are labor costs per unit in Mexico
d. Do higher labor costs per hour always imply higher labor costs per unit
e. If firms with lower labor costs per unit expand, while those with higher labor costs per unit contract, in which country will mug-making firms be increasing in size and hiring more employees If unskilled pottery workers relocate to where they can find jobs, to which country will they be moving

Question 6

The primary reason people immigrate to the United States is:

A) To escape political or religious oppression back home.
B) To reunite with family members.
C) To improve earnings and living standards.
D) None of the above.

Question 7

Suppose that the projected lifetime earnings gains from migration exceed the costs of moving. Explain how the decision to move might be reversed when a person considers present value.

Question 8

There is evidence that, other things equal, a 10 percent increase in the number of workers having a particular skill level leads to about a 4 percent decline in wages for workers with that skill level. In addition, this 10-to-4 ratio appears to hold true whether the increase in labor supply is caused by domestic changes in labor supply or by an influx of foreign immigrants.
a. Suppose that 42,000 computer programmers work in Silicon Valley. If the number of computer programmers in Silicon Valley increases by 1260 because of a change in U.S. immigration laws, by how many percentage points would you expect the wage of computer programmers to fall in Silicon Valley
b. Suppose that 8000 full-time cooks work in restaurants in the Denver area. If Denver becomes popular both with U.S. citizens and with foreigners such that 400 full-time cooks move to Denver from other parts of the United States while 80 full-time cooks move to Denver from other countries, by how much would you expect the wages of full-time cooks to fall in Denver

Question 9

True or False. Because older adults have more human capital, they are more likely to migrate to another country than younger adults.

Question 10

How might the output and income gains from immigration shown by the simple immigration model be affected by ( a )unemployment in the originating nation, ( b )remittances by immigrants to the home country, and ( c )backflows of migrants to the home country

Question 11

In 2008, an estimated 7.8 million Mexican-born immi­grants were employed in the United States.
a. If 60 percent of the Mexican-born immigrants remitted money to family members in Mexico in 2008, and if they each sent $100 per month, how much money did they remit in total
b. If, instead, 100 percent of the Mexican-born immigrants remitted money to family members in Mexico in 2008, and if they each sent $250 per month, how much money did they remit in total
c. The actual amount remitted to Mexico in 2008 by Mexican-born immigrants living in the United States was about $22 billion. If we assume that 75 percent of the Mexican-born immigrants remitted money to Mexico that year and if we further assume that each of those immigrants remitted an equal amount each month, how much per month did each of those immigrants have to remit to total $22 billion for the year

Question 12

Use the accompanying tables for Neon and Zeon to answer the questions that follow. Assume that the wage rate shown:

equals hourly output and income, and that the accumulated output and income are the sum of the marginal revenue products (MRPs)of each worker.
a. Which country has the greater stock of capital and technological prowess How can you tell
b. Suppose the equilibrium wage rate is $19 in Neon and $7 in Zeon. What is the domestic output (= domestic income)in the two countries
c. Assuming zero migration costs and initial wage rates of $19 in Neon and $7 in Zeon, how many workers will move to Neon Why will not more than that number of workers move to Neon
d. After the move of workers, what will the equilibrium wage rate be in each country What will the domestic output be after the migration What is the amount of the combined gain in domestic output produced by the migration Which country will gain output; which will lose output How will the income of native-born workers be affected in each country

Question 13

Suppose initially that immigrant labor and native-born labor are complementary resources. Explain how a substantial immigration might change the demand for native-born workers, altering their wages. (Review the relevant portion of Chapter 12 if necessary to help answer this question.)Next, suppose that new immigrant labor and previous immigrant labor (not native-born)are substitute resources. Explain how a substantial immigration of new workers might affect the demand for previous immigrants, altering their wages.

Question 14

Migration between North Korea and South Korea has been prohibited since the end of the Korean War in 1953.South Korea is now much richer than North Korea and has a much higher marginal product of labor and a much higher wage rate than North Korea. If workers could migrate from North Korea to South Korea, we would expect:

A) Output to fall in South Korea but rise in North Korea.
B) Output to rise in each country.
C) Total combined output in the two countries to fall.
D) Total combined output in the two countries to rise.

Question 15

What is a "brain drain" as it relates to international migration If emigrants are highly educated and received greatly subsidized education in the home country, is there any justification for that country to levy a "brain drain" tax on them Do you see any problems with this idea

Question 16

True or False. Research indicates that immigration causes large decreases in the average American wage.

Question 17

In July 2007 The Wall Street Journal (WSJ)reported that a growing shortage of skilled labor in Eastern European countries such as Slovakia was driving up wages in key industries and reducing business income. The reason for the shortages was a large migration of skilled Eastern European workers to Western European countries. Use the simple immigration model to demonstrate the key elements of the WSF story as just described.

Question 18

Why is each of these statements somewhat misleading ( a )"Illegal immigrants take only jobs that no American wants."( b )"Deporting 100,000 illegal immigrants would create 100,000 job openings for Americans."

Question 19

Why are so many state and local governments greatly concerned about the Federal government's allegedly lax enforcement of the immigration laws and congressional proposals to grant legal status (amnesty)to the 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States How might an amnesty program affect the flow of future border crossings

Question 20

If someone favors the free movement of labor within the United States, is it inconsistent for that person to also favor restrictions on the international movement of labor Why or why not

Question 21

Last word What was the single most important reason for the decline in illegal immigration between 2007 and 2009 What other factors were at play Going forward, why might people think it more likely that illegal immigration will fall rather than rise