Migration policy is one of the axes of the Spanish presidency of the EU throughout this semester. Jean-Cristophe Dumont is the main author of the International Migration Outlook prepared by the OECD. He was in Barcelona this week to participate in a meeting at the Cercle d’Economia.
Is immigration good for the economy?
If migrations are well managed, they are profitable for the host countries and for the immigrants themselves. But with certain conditions: that these people who arrive can value their skills, integrate into the labor market and contribute fiscally. In fact, it has been shown that in all OECD countries without exception, immigrants contribute more in social contributions and taxes than they receive in individual benefits, including education and health. Even if public goods such as infrastructure, police or justice are included, the final balance is positive. In the case of Spain, for example, immigrants contribute to financing 13% of military expenses, the central State and the interest cost of the debt.
And in terms of employment?
In the short term there may be negative effects on wages or the unemployment rate, but they are marginal and affect those profiles of workers who are close to the immigrant group. But there is literature that confirms that after five to ten years these distortions disappear and the effects become systematically positive.
So why is there growing hostility toward immigrants in the West?
A public policy is needed to accompany immigrants in host countries. There are several options. There is the case of Canada, which selects its immigration: 60% have a higher diploma. Those who arrive in Canada receive a language course, they are helped with the equivalence of degrees, and they are advised on housing. It is an economic investment, to take advantage of the skills that come from outside. Immigrants must be accompanied, otherwise they will remain on the side of the road and will incur a cost.
The perception of public opinion is that there is a certain lack of control.
There is a majority of citizens who believe that there is more irregular than regular immigration. And it is totally false. The bulk of immigration takes place with work permits, residence permits, and family reunification permits. It must not be denied that there are irregular flows, but they are only a fraction of the whole. The images of the boats in Canaria, the collapse in Lampedusa, the Ukrainians fleeing the war… are powerful, but we must also look at the figures.
And what do the figures say?
For example, in France, citizens believe that immigrants are more than twice as numerous as they really are. Yes, there are saturated neighborhoods, cases of crime associated with the group… These are situations that exist, but there is a distorted vision of reality.
What emerges from the latest OECD study?
That 2022 was a historic year in terms of migration in the OECD, with increases in all categories and in almost all countries. And the good news is that immigrant employment rates are also historic.
And do these immigrants stay or later return?
Permanent immigration is up 26% compared to the previous year. We are talking about six million people, it is a huge number. And not counting the Ukrainians. The rest of the categories have also registered increases: temporary has soared by 74%; the student, 46% (the Chinese), and the asylum, 90% (Syrians and Afghans). At the same time, the employment rate of natives has increased, so that immigration does not come at the expense of the work of national citizens.
What challenge is immigration for a country like Spain?
Spain has gone very quickly from being a country from which emigrants left to one that welcomes them. The same thing happened with Portugal and Ireland in the early 2000s. In labor market integration, the balance is favorable: the differences with respect to natives are limited. Having a common language with Latin America also helps. The number of irregulars is low. Now, if we look at the employment rate of immigrants, the majority work in low-skilled sectors and can also perform tasks below their training. And when they have a high qualification, their employment rate is 13% lower than that of natives. So there is room for improvement.
Do you emigrate by choice or by obligation?
40% of immigration in OECD countries is family migration. We should not reduce everything to labor immigration and the economic usefulness of immigration. The right to live as a family must be recognized. Migration is not the solution to demographic aging either, because to do so it would have to be multiplied by ten.
Does the immigrant do jobs that the native no longer wants to do?
In this phase of technological transition, we need more workers. This goes for highly qualified professions, but also for those that are less qualified, such as security and domestic work. Public recovery funds require people to put them in place. And in declining professions, those that lose jobs every year, immigrants represent 32%, such as the metallurgical sector, mining or artisanal jobs.
