Seminar - The U.S. Second-Generation Boom: Growing Contribution to Working-Age Demographics, Socioeconomics, and Health
2:30 - 4:00pm
Room 3598 (via lifts 27-28), 3/F Academic Building

Since the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, an increased number of foreign-born individuals have been renewing the U.S. labor force and countering population aging. While immigration is currently slowing down, the second-generation children of immigrants are reaching prime working age in growing numbers. In this study, we use the Current Population Survey to document demographic trends from 2000-25 and quantify the impact of second-generation immigrants on the labor force. We show that the second-generation population aged 25-64 has doubled since the turn of the century, accounting for more than half of the labor force growth in three out of five largest states. The median age of the population has declined by five years over this period, even as it has increased for the first- and third+ generations. Although we observe many subgroup differences that echo well-documented patterns of stratification within immigrants, we also show that the working-age second-generation are overall demonstrating strong socioeconomic and health outcomes. Together with their rising population share, the second-generation has already played an important role in countering a decline in the overall labor force participation rate and driving improvement in population health.

When
Where
Room 3598 (via lifts 27-28), 3/F Academic Building
Language
English
More Information

Leafia Ye is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Toronto, where she is cross-appointed at the Institute for Life Course & Aging and affiliated with the Global Migration Lab and the Centre for Global Social Policy. Dr. Ye is a scholar of international migration and aging. Her work identifies barriers to immigrant integration into host societies by documenting how and why socioeconomics and health inequalities evolve over the life course. She has particularly strong expertise in the well-being of immigrants in the U.S. and Canada as they navigate aging and retirement. Her work has received funding from the National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, and awards from multiple sections of the American Sociological Association.

 

Host: Prof Jiaxin SHI, Assistant Professor, Division of Social Science, HKUST

Speakers / Performers:
Prof Leafia YE
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Toronto
Organizer
Division of Social Science
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