A new study by the Brookings Institute takes a close look at the education levels, employment levels, and economic contributions of immigrants to the biggest 100 U.S. metropolitan areas.

 

Results differ significantly by geographic area (there’s a nice interactive chart you can scroll through to see what numbers of immigrants your city attracts and their “skill level ratio”), but the research shows that the majority of today’s immigrants are well-educated compared with those arriving here in the past. While in 1980 only 19 percent of immigrants aged twenty-five to sixty-four held even a bachelor’s degree and nearly 40 percent had not completed high school, today 30 percent of working age immigrants hold at least a bachelor's degree with only 28 percent lacking a high school diploma.

 

The study discusses the reality of immigrant value to the U.S. economy:

 

“…the highly charged public debate on immigration has focused on illegal immigration and its costs. Often lost in this discussion is the vital role of immigrants in the U.S. labor market. Immigrants are now one-in-seven U.S. residents and almost one-in-six workers. They are a significant presence in various sectors of the economy such as construction and hospitality on the low-skill end, and information technology and health care on the high-skill end. While border enforcement and illegal immigration are a focal point, longer-term U.S. global competitiveness rests on the ability of immigrants and their children to thrive economically and to contribute to the nation’s productivity.”

 

Interestingly, even lower-skilled immigrants have higher rates of employment and lower rates of household poverty than their U.S. counterparts. However, they have lower earnings on average than U.S. natives.

 

In fact, both higher- and lower-skilled immigrants face this problem. They have trouble transferring their skill sets to U.S. markets and frequently take lower-level jobs than their education and abilities would have allowed in their home countries. One challenge is recognition of their educational credentials by potential employers (a problem that can be helped through credential evaluation, as discussed in an earlier post here). But the Brookings Institute study discusses lack of English proficiency as the biggest problem.

 

A few of the several models mentioned in the study as helping immigrants overcome language barriers to achieve better career success:

 

 

U.S. employers clearly benefit by increasing the language skills of their immigrant employees, in order to allow them to contribute to their organization at full potential. Look at your employees’ backgrounds and potential: are English language skills a barrier to moving ahead? Especially if you’re not sure, I would add one final “model program” that can help you. TOEIC tests provide an excellent way to assess English language strengths and weaknesses for the workplace, match those skills with what particular responsibilities require, and allow placement and tracking of progress in English language learning.

 

What other programs and tools are you are aware of that can help allow immigrant workers, high-skilled or low-skilled, contribute to their full potential?