Immigration and Unemployment Benefits: Evidence from Germany
July 18, 2019
Working Paper
Despite the growing body of literature on the labour market impacts of immigration, evidence remains mixed and inconclusive, and additional case studies are necessary to clarify when and why impacts are positive or negative for native populations. In this report, the authors explore the impact of immigration on the likelihood of natives claiming unemployment benefits in Germany — the country which is, by some standards, the main migrant receiving country in Europe. The results suggest that an increase in the share of the local population accounted for by migrants slightly lessens the likelihood that native Germans will claim unemployment benefits, but the effect is small and not always statistically significant. The impacts are also similar across genders. The report discusses possible theoretical explanations for these results.
