Immigrants in a restructuring economy: A partial test of theories

The article addresses the occupational integration of immigrants from the f ormer USSR into the economy of the city of Tel Aviv. This process is examin ed from a structural perspective, which focuses on the location of immigran ts as a group in the restructuring economy of Israel's main business centre . Data from labour force surveys and income surveys conducted in 1992 and 199 4 by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics are used to analyse the distribu tion of veteran Israelis and recent immigrants among economic sectors and o ccupations. Despite their superior academic and professional qualifications, immigrants were underrepresented in the business and financial services sector, the l eading sector in post-industrial economies. They were most strongly represe nted in the personal services sector, where they replaced Palestinian worke rs. The findings lend support to both the restructuring and replacement hyp otheses.