New records in migration flows and migrant employment were recorded by the OECD in 2023

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For the second consecutive year, migration flows have reached “record levels, but they are not out of control,” according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Additionally, immigrants who fill a need as a workforce have also not been sufficiently integrated into the labor market.
In 2023, the 38 OECD countries recorded 6.5 million new “permanent” immigrants (including individuals with residency permits and European nationals), an increase of 10% compared to 2022, a year that had already recorded record migration flows.
The United States, where Donald Trump, who was elected in the recent presidential elections, has promised mass deportations, remains the top destination country with 1.2 million new legal, permanent residents, the highest level since 2006.
Additionally, about one-third of OECD countries have experienced record levels of migration, particularly the United Kingdom (747,000), but also Canada (472,000), France (298,000), Japan (155,000), and Switzerland (144,500).
On the other hand, the rate of migration flows decreased in another third of the region’s countries, particularly in Denmark, Estonia, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, and New Zealand.
Most of the increase is due to family migration (+16%) representing 43% of total entries, but migration for humanitarian reasons (+20%) is also on the rise, notes the OECD.
The rates of labor migration remained stable. However, the integration of immigrants into the labor market continues to reach unprecedented levels.
The post-pandemic upward trend in migrant employment continued in 2023, with the OECD recording “overall historic high employment levels” at 71.8%. The highest employment rate is in New Zealand (82.3%), while it reaches 62.4% in France.
Simultaneously, unemployment levels in these populations are low (7.3%).
“Today it is slightly more likely (for immigrants) to be long-term unemployed compared to the unemployed born in the country,” notes the international organization.
Ten countries, including Canada (75.8%), the United Kingdom (76.3%), and the United States (73.3%), as well as the 27 EU countries, recorded “the highest migrant employment rates ever recorded.”
“The strong labor demand in host countries has been one of the main drivers of migration over the past two years,” explains OECD employment and labor director Stefano Scarpetta.
“In many OECD countries facing widespread labor shortages and impending demographic changes, the increasing number of immigrant workers has contributed to sustainable economic development,” he continues.
The proportion of immigrants among entrepreneurs has significantly increased in OECD countries over the past 15 years. In 2022, 17% of the self-employed were, on average, immigrants, compared to 11% in 2006, notes the report.
“The public dialogue on the impact of migration on the labor market generally revolves around the competition for jobs between immigrants and workers born in the region. However, immigrants are not only competitive workers but also employers,” summarizes the report.
Aware that these “significant flows have caused widespread concern” and chiefly “intense demand for reception infrastructure,” the OECD considers that managing migration “requires an increasingly delicate balance.”
Besides tightening asylum legislation, some countries have also begun imposing restrictions on other legal migration routes to reduce pressure on the housing market and public services.

MAR.MI

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