For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, May 22, 2013                  USDL-13-0991

Technical information:  (202) 691-6378  *  cpsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/cps
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


             FOREIGN-BORN WORKERS: LABOR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS -- 2012


The unemployment rate for foreign-born persons in the United States was 8.1
percent in 2012, down from 9.1 percent in 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics reported today. The jobless rate of native-born persons also fell
to 8.1 percent in 2012, down from 8.9 percent in the prior year.

Data on nativity are collected as part of the Current Population Survey
(CPS), a monthly sample survey of approximately 60,000 households. The
foreign born are persons who reside in the United States but who were born
outside the country or one of its outlying areas to parents who were not
U.S. citizens. The foreign born include legally-admitted immigrants,
refugees, temporary residents such as students and temporary workers, and
undocumented immigrants. The survey data, however, do not separately
identify the numbers of persons in these categories. For further information
about the survey, see the Technical Note.

Highlights from the 2012 data:

  --In 2012, there were 25.0 million foreign-born persons in the U.S.
    labor force, comprising 16.1 percent of the total. (See table 1.)

  --Hispanics accounted for 48.3 percent of the foreign-born labor force
    in 2012, and Asians accounted for 23.7 percent. (See table 1.) (Data
    in this news release for persons who are white, black, or Asian do
    not include those of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. Data on persons
    of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity are presented separately.)

  --Foreign-born workers were more likely than native-born workers to
    be employed in service occupations; production, transportation, and
    material moving occupations; and natural resources, construction, and
    maintenance occupations. (See table 4.)

  --The median usual weekly earnings of foreign-born full-time wage
    and salary workers were $625 in 2012, compared with $797 for their
    native-born counterparts. (See table 5.) (Differences in earnings
    reflect a variety of factors, including variations in the
    distributions of foreign-born and native-born workers by educational
    attainment, occupation, industry, and geographic region.)

Demographic Characteristics

The demographic characteristics of the foreign-born labor force differ
from those of the native-born labor force. In 2012, men accounted for
57.6 percent of the foreign-born labor force, compared with 52.3
percent of the native-born labor force. By age, the proportion of the
foreign-born labor force made up of 25- to 54-year-olds (75.6 percent)
was higher than for the native-born labor force (63.4 percent). Labor
force participation is typically highest among persons in that age
bracket. (See table 1.)

In 2012, nearly half (48.3 percent) of the foreign-born labor force
was Hispanic, and almost one-quarter (23.7 percent) was Asian, compared
with 9.5 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively, of the native-born labor force.
About 18.2 percent of the foreign-born labor force was white and 8.7
percent was black, compared with 74.9 percent and 11.6 percent, respectively,
of the native-born labor force.

In terms of educational attainment, 24.6 percent of the foreign-born
labor force 25 years old and over in 2012 had not completed high school,
compared with 5.1 percent of the native-born labor force. The foreign
born were less likely than the native born to have some college or an
associate degree--17.4 percent versus 30.1 percent. Similar proportions of
foreign-born and native-born persons in the labor force had a bachelor's
degree or higher (33.0 percent and 36.7 percent, respectively).

Labor Force

The share of the U.S. civilian labor force that was foreign born was 16.1
percent in 2012; it was 15.9 percent in 2011. (See table 1.)

In 2012, the labor force participation rate of the foreign born was 66.3
percent, compared with 63.2 percent for the native born. The labor force
participation rate was 78.5 percent for foreign-born men and 68.6 percent
for native-born men. Among women, 54.8 percent of the foreign born were
labor force participants, compared with 58.2 percent of the native born.

Among the foreign born, the labor force participation rate for blacks was
70.6 percent in 2012, little different from the participation rate for
Hispanics (69.0 percent). The participation rate for Asians was 64.7
percent, while that for whites was 60.1 percent. Among the native born,
the labor force participation rates for Hispanics and whites were 63.9 percent and
63.7 percent, respectively, higher than the rates for Asians (61.5 percent)
and blacks (60.0 percent). The labor force participation rates for foreign-
born blacks, Asians, and Hispanics were higher than for their native-born
counterparts, while the rate for foreign-born whites was lower than the
rate for native-born whites.

In 2012, foreign-born mothers with children under 18 years old were less
likely to be labor force participants than were native-born mothers--60.3 percent
versus 73.1 percent. Labor force participation differences between foreign-
born and native-born mothers were greater among those with younger children
than among those with older children. The labor force participation rate
of foreign-born mothers with children under age 6 was 52.1 percent in
2012, much lower than that for native-born mothers with children under
age 6 at 68.1 percent. Among women with children under age 3, the participation
rate for the foreign born (47.1 percent) was 17.8 percentage points
below that for native-born mothers (64.9 percent). The labor force
participation rates of foreign- and native-born fathers with children under
age 18 were similar, at 93.8 percent and 92.9 percent, respectively. (See table 2.)

By region, the foreign born made up a larger share of the labor force in
the West (23.9 percent) and in the Northeast (18.9 percent) than for the
nation as a whole (16.1 percent) in 2012. In contrast, the foreign born
made up a smaller share of the labor force than for the nation as a whole
in the South (14.6 percent) and Midwest (8.2 percent). (See table 6.)

Unemployment

From 2011 to 2012, the unemployment rate of foreign-born workers declined
from 9.1 percent to 8.1 percent. The unemployment rate for foreign-born men
fell from 8.8 percent to 7.5 percent, and the rate for foreign-born women was down
from 9.5 percent to 8.9 percent. Among the native born, the unemployment rate
declined from 8.9 percent to 8.1 percent over the year. The rate for men fell from
9.5 percent to 8.4 percent, while the rate for women was down from 8.3 percent to 7.7
percent. (See table 1.)

Among the foreign born, Asians had an unemployment rate of 5.7 percent in
2012, lower than the rates for whites (7.1 percent), blacks (11.1 percent),
and Hispanics (9.1 percent). Among the native born, the jobless rate for
blacks (14.3 percent) was higher than the rates for whites (6.6 percent),
Asians (6.7 percent), and Hispanics (11.5 percent). The unemployment rates
for foreign-born blacks, Asians, and Hispanics were lower than for their
native-born counterparts, while the rates for foreign-born and native-born
whites were little different.

Occupation

In 2012, foreign-born workers were more likely than native-born workers
to be employed in service occupations (25.2 percent versus 16.5 percent). Within
service occupations, two-thirds of the foreign born were employed in food
preparation and serving related occupations and in building and grounds
cleaning and maintenance occupations, whereas one-half of native-born
service workers were employed in those occupations. Foreign-born workers
also were more likely than native-born workers to be employed in production,
transportation, and material moving occupations (15.5 percent versus 11.2 percent)
and in natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations (12.7 percent
versus 8.3 percent). (See table 4.)

Native-born workers were more likely than foreign-born workers to be
employed in management, professional, and related occupations (39.5 percent
versus 30.0 percent), and in sales and office occupations (24.6 percent versus
16.5 percent).

Employed foreign-born men were more likely than their native-born
counterparts to work in natural resources, construction, and maintenance
occupations, and in service occupations. Compared with native-born women
workers, employed foreign-born women were more likely to be in service
occupations and in production, transportation, and material moving
occupations. The disparity was especially great in service occupations.
Among employed women, 33.2 percent of the foreign born worked in service
occupations in 2012, compared with 19.4 percent of the native born.
Employed native-born women were more likely than employed foreign-born
women to be in sales and office occupations, 32.0 percent versus 22.6 percent.

Earnings

In 2012, the median usual weekly earnings of foreign-born, full-time wage
and salary workers ($625) were 78.4 percent of the earnings of their
native-born counterparts ($797). Among men, median earnings for the foreign
born were $665 per week, while the native born earned $898 per week. The
median usual weekly earnings for foreign-born women were $589, compared
with $710 for native-born women. Differences in earnings reflect a variety
of factors, including variations in the distributions of foreign-born
and native-born workers by educational attainment, occupation, industry,
and geographic region. (See table 5.)

Among the major race and ethnicity groups, Hispanic foreign-born full-time
wage and salary workers earned 78.1 percent as much as their native-born
counterparts in 2012. For white, black, and Asian workers, earnings for
the foreign born and the native born were similar within each group.

The earnings of both foreign-born and native-born workers increase with
education. In 2012, foreign-born workers age 25 and over with less than
a high school education earned $428 per week, while those with a bachelor's
degree and higher earned about 2.7 times as much--$1,164 per week. Among
the native born, those with a bachelor's degree and higher earned about
2.3 times as much as those with less than a high school education--$1,165
versus $510 per week.

Native-born workers earn more than the foreign born at most educational
attainment levels. The gap between the earnings of foreign-born and native-
born workers closes at higher levels of education. For example, among high
school graduates in 2012, full-time workers who were foreign born earned
81.5 percent as much as their native-born counterparts. Among those with
a bachelor's degree and higher, the earnings of foreign-born workers were
essentially the same as the earnings of native-born workers.

Technical Note


   The estimates in this release are based on annual average data from
the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS, which is conducted by
the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is a
monthly survey of about 60,000 eligible households that provides
information on the labor force status, demographics, and other
characteristics of the nation's civilian noninstitutional population
age 16 and over. In response to the increased demand for statistical
information about the foreign born, questions on nativity,
citizenship, year of entry into the United States, and the parental
nativity of respondents were added to the CPS beginning in January
1994. Prior to 1994, the primary sources of data on the foreign born
were the decennial census, two CPS supplements (conducted in April
1983 and November 1989), and, to some extent, information collected by
the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (formerly known as the
Immigration and Naturalization Service).

   The foreign- and native-born data presented in this release are not
strictly comparable with data for earlier years due to the introduction
of updated population estimates, or controls, used in the CPS. The
population controls are updated each year in January to reflect the
latest information about population change. Additional information is
available from the BLS website at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#pop.

   Information in this release will be made available to sensory
impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200,
Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Reliability of the estimates

   Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and
nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than the entire population,
is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ
from the true population values they represent. The component of this
difference that occurs because samples differ by chance is known as
sampling error, and its variability is measured by the standard error
of the estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of
confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more
than 1.6 standard errors from the true population value because of
sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent
level of confidence.

   The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling
error can occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a
segment of the population, inability to obtain information for all
respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents
to provide correct information, and errors made in the collection or
processing of the data.

   Additional information about the reliability of data from the CPS
and estimating standard errors is available at
www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#reliability.

Definitions

   Definitions of the principal terms used in this release are
presented below.

   Foreign born. The foreign born are persons residing in the United
States who were not U.S. citizens at birth. That is, they were born
outside the United States or one of its outlying areas such as Puerto
Rico or Guam, to parents neither of whom was a U.S. citizen. The
foreign-born population includes legally-admitted immigrants,
refugees, temporary residents such as students and temporary workers,
and undocumented immigrants. The survey data, however, do not
separately identify the number of persons in these categories.

   Native born. The native born are persons born in the United States
or one of its outlying areas such as Puerto Rico or Guam or who were
born abroad of at least one parent who was a U.S. citizen.

   Race and ethnicity groups. In this release, the data are presented
for non-Hispanic whites, blacks, and Asians and for persons of
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. These four groups are mutually exclusive
but not exhaustive. Other race groups (including persons who selected
more than one race category) are included in the overall totals but
are not shown separately because the number of survey respondents is
too small to develop statistically reliable estimates. The presentation
of data on race and ethnicity in this release differs from that
which appears in most analyses of CPS labor force data because persons
of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity are separated from the race groups.
Because persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity can be of any race,
they are usually included in the race groups as well as shown
separately in the Hispanic or Latino ethnicity group. The reason for
the difference in the data presentation in this release is because
about half of the foreign born are of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity and
they have somewhat different labor force characteristics than the non-
Hispanic foreign born.

   Employed. Employed persons are all those who, during the survey
reference week, (a) did any work at all as paid employees; (b) worked
in their own business, profession, or on their own farm; or (c) worked
15 hours or more as unpaid workers in a family member's business.
Persons who were temporarily absent from their jobs because of
illness, bad weather, vacation, labor dispute, or another reason also
are counted as employed.

   Unemployed. The unemployed are those who had no employment during
the reference week, were available for work at that time, and had made
specific efforts to find employment sometime during the 4-week period
ending with the reference week. Persons who were waiting to be
recalled to a job from which they had been laid off need not be
looking for work to be classified as unemployed.

   Civilian labor force. The civilian labor force comprises all
persons classified as employed or unemployed.

   Unemployment rate. The unemployment rate is the number unemployed
as a percent of the civilian labor force.

   Labor force participation rate. The labor force participation rate
is the labor force as a percent of the population.

   Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before taxes and
other deductions and include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips
usually received (at the main job in the case of multiple jobholders).
Earnings reported on a basis other than weekly are converted to a
weekly equivalent.

   Full-time wage and salary workers. These are workers who usually
work 35 hours or more per week at their sole or principal job and
receive wages, salaries, and other types of compensation. The group
includes employees in both the private and public sectors but, for
purposes of the earnings series, excludes all self-employed persons,
regardless of whether or not their businesses are incorporated.

   Median earnings. The median earnings is the amount which divides a
given earnings distribution into two equal groups, one having earnings
above the median and the other having earnings below the median.