Earnings in Canada: the roles of immigrant generation, French ethnicity, and language

Abstract

"The effects of immigrant status, French ethnicity, and language fluency in Canada has received relatively little attention in the economics literature. Moreover, the coverage of the few studies available is highly selective, and the results often conflict. This paper seeks to correct these deficiencies by using data from the 1971 and 1981 Censuses of Canada to analyze the labor market adjustment of immigrants and French Canadians, as well as the role of language in the Canadian labor market. The analysis is conducted in a manner which will facilitate comparison with previous studies of immigrants and their children in Canada and in other countries. In addition, by comparing 1971 and 1981 Census data, the paper highlights the similarity and changes in patterns over the decade."