Essay Example on US Immigration: An Economic and Social Analysis

The United States has for long been regarded as a land of great opportunities, a place where prospective immigrants can accomplish prosperity, and upward mobility (Abramitzky & Boustan, 2017). Hitherto, both in the past, and currently, US citizens have voiced their concern that immigration subordinate wages, and that foreigners integrate swiftly in the country unlike other developed European nations (University of Pennsylvania, 2016). Immigration policy has long been perceived as a critical matter in America. Even though much of the discussion focuses on cultural issues, the economic impacts of immigration are clear and obvious (University of Pennsylvania, 2016). The economic study has found minimal data, in which that inflows of foreign labor contribute to decreased jobs, or American wages (University of Pennsylvania, 2016). Monetary theory and assumptions from many economic analysts have affirmed that wages are not affected by immigration over the long-run and that the monetary impacts of immigration are often positive for the aboriginals, and for the entire economy (University of Pennsylvania, 2016). The paper will discuss in detail and demonstrate how immigration has been a key point in the United States' soaring economy.

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Immigration spearheads the aspect of novelty and ingenuity in the United States. Further, the presence of foreigners normally generates prospects for less-skilled native workers to gain more specialization skills in their profession, thus, augmenting their productivity (University of Pennsylvania, 2016). Immigration also improves the state's monetary situation, as many immigrants pay more taxes over a longer time frame than they consume in government amenities. Nevertheless, native-born citizens with a large focus of less-educated immigrants may be subjected to large tax burdens, as these immigrants pay less in taxes, and their consumption of government services is high, as they are likely to send their children to public institutions (University of Pennsylvania, 2016).

Abramitzky & Boustan (2017) indicated that the presence of immigrants can result in a reduction of the wages of some natives, though the proof has not been fully substantiated, they still insist immigrants have adverse effects on the US economy. Foreigners create victors, and losers in the native population, and among the underlying immigrant workers. They do so by contributing to the reduction of wages of the low-skilled natives and also encourage some native-born to shift way from immigrant gateway cities (Abramitzky & Boustan, 2017). However, on a positive note, they also provide capital investment in the US. In a nutshell, the presence of immigrants provides both positive, and negative fiscal impact in the US economy, albeit their positive contributions in terms of capital investment transcends their adverse effects in the economy. Drinkwater (2010) argued that immigration plays a huge role in filling the skill gaps, which can, in turn, result in reducing pressure on prices, and therefore make a positive net contribution to public finances of the host country

The political rhetoric on immigrants being perceived as having a negative impact on the US economy became more evident during Trump's presidential campaigns more than his predecessor. During Trump's campaigns, the issue of immigration was made a central theme. After winning the elections, President Trump issued a run of executive orders promising significant changes to the US immigration policy (Pierce & Selee, 2017). He mainly focused on the eradication of illegal immigration that was argued to negatively impact the economy. Some of the raft measures that were implemented include; augmenting apprehensions, and the evacuation of undocumented foreigners within the nation, and broadening the priorities for immigration enforcement (Pierce & Selee, 2017). President Trump also focused on erecting a border wall along the US-Mexico borderline to reduce illegal smuggling of goods to the country, which was costing the nation millions in terms of not generating much revenue from the US-Mexico trade relationship.

Drinkwater (2010) designated that during the election period, the subject of immigration became a primary election weapon to win the hearts of the native population during the recent general election. During these periods, negative opinions tended to linger, notwithstanding the argument that immigration can yield positive monetary benefits for the host nation. Some of these debates suggest that the negative effects of immigration are often felt by the unskilled natives in the labor market of the host nation (Drinkwater, 2010). This is because they result to be paid less than the recommended minimum wage due to stiff competition from skilled and educated foreigners. Also, Golsbee (2019) discussed what will happen to the US economy for some time after Trump's administration cuts immigration. Golsbee (2019) explained how immigration contributes to the growth of the economy because they provide a bigger workforce. Additionally, immigrants expand the pool of available labor for industries such as computing, construction, education, agriculture, among others.

Research done by Kerr and Turner (2015) highlighted that immigrants who came to the United States are valuable to the economy. For instance, with the pursuit of the American dream, students gain the education they were seeking and in the long-run invest back their time and skills into the economy. Statistics show that immigrants workers with bachelor's education and a few other academic studies such as US science and engineering account for up to a quarter of the US workforce (Kerr & Turner, 2015). Immigrants are thus linked with innovation particularly in the line of economics, something that increases America's workforce. At the same time, Kerr and Turner (2015) asserted that there are 28% of foreign-born individuals who are doctorate-level workers and over 45% of Ph.D. employees who work in science and engineering fields. From these statistics, the high skilled immigrants have a direct positive impact on the US economy in that they create employment for natives and immigrants (Ruhs & Vargas-Silva, 2015). They contribute to innovations, which are measured by scientific output hence augmenting the net human capital and wages.

Moreover, immigrants are important for the US economy because they involve themselves in jobs that are vital for the development of the economy. Also, immigrants partake in more than a third of the US workforce in many industries. Sherman, Stone, and Parrott (2019) demonstrated that 36% of immigrants work in farming, fishing, and forestry fields. On the same hand, building, maintenance, and grounds cleaning occupations account for up to 36% of immigrants. Among other occupations, for instance, the construction industry comprises about 24% immigrants, to mention but a few (Sherman et al., 2019). Immigrants play an important role in the US economy in that they help to fill key gaps in various industries. Ruhs and Vargas-Silva (2015) indicated that the contribution of immigrants to the development of the economy will be difficult to replace. The reasoning behind this narrative is that among the US-born citizens have higher educational attainments. Immigrants, however, appear less skilled hence can take low skilled jobs that natives are unwilling to take.

Conclusion

In conclusion, immigration has for a long time contributed to the growth of the United States economy. The benefits of immigration in the US are greater in that the immigrants opened doors for scientific innovation and research, and at the same time, heightened the line up of the economy. Also, immigrants can take low-skilled occupations, which native-born Americans are not willing to hence helping the United States gross domestic income to grow.

References

Abramitzky, R., & Boustan, L. (2017). Immigration in American economic history. Journal of Economic Literature, 55(4), 1311-1345. Doi: http://dx.doi.org.portal.lib.fit.edu/10.1257/jel.20151189

Drinkwater, S. (2010). Immigration and the economy. National Institute Economic Review, (213), R1+. Retrieved from https://link-gale-com.portal.lib.fit.edu/apps/doc/A238556984/ITOF?u=melb26933&sid=ITOF&xid=c25c9397

Goolsbee, A. (2019, October 11). Sharp Cuts in Immigration Threaten U.S. Economy and Innovation. Retrieved February 5, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/11/business/immigration-cuts-economy.html

Kerr, W. R., & Turner, S. E. (2015). Introduction: US High-Skilled Immigration in the Global Economy. Journal of Labor Economics, 33, S1-S4. https://doi-org.portal.lib.fit.edu/10.1086/682291

Pierce, S. & Selee, A. (2017). Immigration under Trump: A review of policy shifts in the year since the election. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/publications/TrumpatOne_FINAL.pdf

Ruhs, M., & Vargas-Silva, C. (2015). The labor market effects of immigration. The Migration Observatory. https://www.bl.uk/britishlibrary/~/media/bl/global/social-welfare/pdfs/non-secure/l/a/b/labour-market-effects-of-immigration.pdf

Sherman, A., Trisi, D., Stone, C., Gonzales, S., & Parrott, S. (2019, August 15). Immigrants Contribute Greatly to U.S. Economy, Despite Administration's "Public Charge" Rule Rationale. Retrieved February 5, 2020, from https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/immigrants-contribute-greatly-to-us-economy-despite-administrations

The University of Pennsylvania. (2016). The effects of immigration on the United States' economy. https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/issues/2016/1/27/the-effects-of-immigration-on-the-united-states-economy