Age, Gender and Migration Status on the Labour Market – a Case for Accumulation of Advantages and Disadvantages?

The analysis  addressed in the presentation will show the situation of the older workers from the perspective of their minority status, namely belonging to the group of migrants, as well as from the perspective of gender. We will present the problem of the accumulation of certain advantages and disadvantages during the life-course of individuals with regard also to their socio-demographic characteristics. The questions this presentation will answer are the following: Are there significant differences in labour market outcomes between the workers with migration background and the workers without migration background? Do these differences increase with age?  What is the impact of those two dimensions – age and migration status on one of the labour market outcomes, namely the wages? and finally, what is the role of gender in determining the changes in employment status?

The analyses in this paper draw on data from the SOEP (German Socio-Economic Panel) which is a representative, interdisciplinary, and longitudinal survey of the German population. For our analyses we apply the SOEP data from 1991 to 2011, distinguishing between population with and without migration background. To investigate wage differences between individuals we use the methodology developed by Oaxaca and Blinder (1973).

In the empirical analysis we have found that initial disadvantages in education of men with migration background cumulate across the life span resulting in large differences in labour market situation between older men with and without migration background. In the case of women we do not observe these increasing differences but mainly because both women with and without migration background have a pronounced negative development. Furthermore, the wage analysis reflects that wage differences between individuals with and without migration background are due to their different endowments and not an effect of direct discrimination.