Migration and employment transitions among Nicaraguans in Costa Rica and the United States: what matters where?

Leila Rodriguez, University of Cincinnati
Juan Carlos Vargas, Universidad de Costa Rica

This paper analyzes the effect of migration on the employment transitions of Nicaraguans in Costa Rica and the United States. In receiving countries, turnover can be indicative of how immigrants adjust economically and socially to their new societies, and their impact on a society’s economic growth. In different contexts, the effects of migrant status, household composition, and human and social capital can differ greatly. The specific research questions are 1) What is the effect of migration on employment transitions in Costa Rica and the U.S? 2) For return and circular migrants, does the migration experience change the rates of turnover at home? And 3) How do other events in immigrants’ lives, particularly family formation, affect migration and employment transitions? Event history analysis is employed to understand the effect of these variables on employment transitions in these two countries, and compare them to the rate of transitions migrants had before their first move.