BLACK IMMIGRANTS IN THE UNITED-STATES LABOR-MARKET - AN EARNINGS ANALYSIS

This article investigates the existence and sources of earnings differ entials between black Americans and black immigrants, and between blac k and nonblack immigrants. Employing the Public Use Sample of the 1980 census, the gross earnings differentials between black immigrants and black Americans are estimated to be 8.7 percent in favor of Americans (i.e., Americans earn 8.7 percent more than immigrants). About 2 perc entage points and 6.7 percentage points of the gross differential are, respectively, due to differences in average characteristics and in re turns to the characteristics. The gross differential between black and nonblack immigrants is 22.1 percent in favor of nonblack, of which 13 .8 percentage points are due to differences in average characteristics and 8.3 are due to differences in returns to characteristics.