Immigrant: A Source of Utility and Economic Benefit - Essay Sample

Introduction

An immigrant describes an individual that migrates from one nation or territory to another where they do not have citizenship or rights for them to reside there. There are various undesirable experiences that the immigrants are subjected to as a result of their movements. However, there are multiple ways whereby they help the nations that they go. In this case, the help is in terms of the economic perspective. The immigrants help in the creation of utility in the places that they go. Immigrants own some skills which they put to work; hence lead to the production of various commodities. For example, the majority of the employees at Rocket Fuel are from oversees; which highlights the vital role that the immigrants play in the creation of utility in various economies (Maynard 1). There may be labor shortages in the different economic sectors that exist in a nation. Thus, the immigrants step in and fill the void; hence there is the assurance of centimes production. It is factual to state that a significant section of most economies, for instance, America, are built with the help of immigrants. The prosperity of most sectors in the United States because of migrants' activity. The specialized nature of jobs they are capable of undertaking is because of the skills that they have. However, the significance of immigrants maybe sometimes be understated, as some people view them as a burden to the economy and welfare of the natives. The immigrants are capable of undertaking various roles; which help the American economy in multiple ways; which are both desirable and undesirable to some parties.

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Income inequality is the description of the disparity of incomes between people in a given society. That is whereby some people in the community have more earnings than others. The more the people that are high-income earners and more people having low incomes, the higher the inequality in a particular economy. The disparity of income in the marketplace is functional, and also undesirable for the economy. Various reasons can be highlighted that show why income inequality is not suitable for the economy. The first reason why income inequality is not ideal for the economy is about the social make-up of society (Telford 3). When there is more income inequality, the poor become more dedicated to seeking income. For example, women seek employment opportunities as opposed to traditional roles. That reduces their effectiveness in the roles that they play in the family setting. For example, the conventional role of the women initially was to take care of the children.

However, as a result, if the poverty that is introduced by income inequality, the women are forced by the circumstances to look for jobs. That is meant to improve the household level of income but is associated with reduced attention to their traditional roles (Appelbaum 3). The welfare of the family setting is thus compromised, whereby women undertake the functions previously are left unattended to. For example, the nurturing of children is left to the society, and their morals are compromised. That leads to the community raising children that lack the moral and emotional support of parents. Hence, the children have their welfare and growth compromised in the long run.

The other reason why income inequality is not suitable for America is that it may compromise democracy. That is whereby the preferences of the people may change. For example, earlier, the priorities of the people were more social than economic. That is there the welfare of the relationships between people was given priority to the financial aspects. However, because of the income inequality, that has changed over time. The significant policies that are being discussed in politics are about the economic state of the people, without regard to their social welfare. For example, there is a proposal to tax the rich more, and the poor less. That may have the effect of reducing the inequality of the people in the economy. Furthermore, by taxing rich people more, it will reduce the amount of wealth that they own.

The effect that reducing the wealth owned by the rich people will be the reduction of the capital they have to invest. When there is less investment in the economy, it will reduce the rate of productivity. When productivity is low, then the rate of economic growth being experienced in the marketplace will below. Thus, it is evident that income inequality is not suitable for America from a democratic perspective. When there is income inequality, it has an effect of making people more miserable. That makes people more willing to work with low wages. That has an issue to do with the role that the immigrants play in the economy. The immigrants, in most cases, are the more impoverished individuals in the society; whose welfare is significantly compromised (Anna 1). That is because of their economic situation; which is because they cannot afford to live a decent lifestyle. They end up accepting low wages in the economy, pushing the payments lower. That is not good for the economy because it reduces the welfare of the people.

By reducing wages, more immigrants are employees, mostly in the informal sector. That has a positive effect on the welfare of the recipients of the services and not the immigrants themselves. For the number of caregivers increases; hence improving the well-being of the people needing those services. For example, the sick and elderly people can afford the services being offered. Another example is the people that work in other informal sectors such as hotels; whereby with low wages, their employment rates increase. However, that benefits only a few people in the society. The poor, in this case, the immigrants; leave a poor quality of life because their employers are paying them meagre wages. In a great economic set up with equality, there should be the redistribution of wealth where the poor are paid better salaries. That will have the effect of reducing inequality (Span 2). By paying the immigrants better wages, there will be a flow of resources from the rich part of society to the poor. That will improve the quality of life; as wealth will be redistributed. However, with increased inequality, no redistribution of the wealth is owned by the wealthy part of society. Hence, the ills associated with imbalance continue to be experienced in community.

Migration of people from one place to another is the other undesirable effect associated with inequality. That is because in most cases, the movement is not because of better fortunes in the new places, but the low cost of living in those areas caused by low wages among the people. An example is that women are more willing to move to cities where there are immigrants that are willing to take low wages and offer to take care of their kids. That is an essential role that is played by the immigrants, but their worth is being misused. The immigrants should be in a position to move from the places where they are paid low wages, to the places where they can earn better. However, when the immigrants move to the places where they can make better, the cost of living will not allow them to sustain their lives. That is because the higher costs of living will take the additional income earned by the immigrants. Thus, they are forced to stay in certain areas, receive low wages, and continue living a low quality of life.

The other school of thought is the idea that income inequality is good for the economy; which is because of the effects that it has on various sectors. First, is with the corporate world, about the efforts that people make to get better jobs. As a result of income inequality, people make efforts to reduce the deficit they have. That is done in the various sector; both formal and informal. For immigrants with low income, they would love to bridge the gap by getting better jobs. In most cases, the better jobs require adequate education and skills in various fields. For them to get jobs, they are motivated to get an education. Thus, they work hard and get an opportunity they see, so that they become literate and qualify for better jobs. Therefore, they attend various institutions of higher learning so that they get the best education. Later, they gain skills and get jobs that pay them well. In the long run, they are in a better position to serve the economy (Frazee 3). For example, in most sectors in the American economy, some immigrants have made milestones in each field. That is whereby they are leaders in various multinationals, and they are serving in their capacity in significant ways. Based on the education and training that they have received so that they get better income levels, they perform better. That is whereby they are involved in innovation and creativity; which makes them perform better.

The other reason why income inequality is considered suitable for the economy is because of the low wages that they are ready to be paid. In most cases, unemployed people are immigrants. That is because of the poverty situation in which they were raised. As a result, they could not afford to get a better education or training. That leads to them being unemployed. As a result of their unemployment, they are ready to be paid low wages in the various sectors in which they serve. That makes the cost of labour low; which is good for employers. When the costs of labour are low, employers are able to increase productivity if their institutions. That is, in most cases, through the use of the labor provided by the immigrants (Maynard 2). The productivity of the economy is thus increased, and the level of unemployment is also reduced in the long run. As a result of the various activities that the immigrants have in the American economy, they have an overall effect of enhancing growth in the economy. The immigrants contribute to the productivity of the economy by around $1600 to $1700 annually. Given their large numbers in the economy, that translates into a massive effect for the economy. Furthermore, compared to the natives with the same level of education, migrants work more and contribute more to the nation's productivity. That increases the rate of economic growth in the economies which they work. As a result of the low incomes and high unemployment among the immigrants, they have engaged in activities such as taking care of the elderly and children. That gives the other people with skills to engage in other productive activities for the economy. Moreover, considering the skilled immigrants, they bring critical skills into the economy. That improves competency and productivity in multiple sectors. Thus, it is evident that immigrants contribute significantly to the economy, and tend to reduce income inequality to earn its benefits.

Work Cited

Anna Grenda "A Nation Built By Immigrants" https://www.bushcenter.org/publications/resources-reports/reports/immigration.html?gclid=Cj0KCQjw6sHzBRCbARIsAF8FMpUojaXxxITdB2EkjNAfz1DFJz7iYYD_GpYLIdJNuWUpUCNd1hG5I2gaAuq0EALw_wcB

Appelbaum, Binyamin. "Fewer Immigrants Mean More Jobs? Not So, Economists Say." The New York Times, The New York Times, 4 Aug. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/08/03/us/politics/legal-immigration-jobs-economy.html

Frazee, Gretchen. "4 Myths About How The Immigrants Effect The U.S. Economy" https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/making-sense/4-myths-about-how-immigrants-affect-the-u-s-economy

Maynard, Micheline. "Immigrants and the Economy." CQ Researcher by CQ Press, 24 Feb. 2017, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2017022400.

Telford, Taylor. Income Inequality in America Is the Highest It's Been since Census Bureau Started Tracking It, Data Shows, 26 Sept. 2019, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/09/26/incomeinequality-america-highest-its-been-since-census-started-tracking-it-data-show/.

Span, Paula. "Income Inequality Ages Badly:...