The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said in a report published on November 3 that foreign-born workers living in its 38 member countries earn on average a third less than natives. Still, the report stressed that they generally have a positive impact on the local labor market, chiefly by helping balance aging populations.
According to the "International Migration Outlook 2025" report, which the OECD published on November 3, immigrant workers continue to play key roles not only in sectors known to have severe labor shortages such as healthcare, but also in many other sectors including agriculture, construction, housing, hospitality and information technology.
In spite of a general slow-down of economic growth, labor markets across OECD countries remain under great pressure to attract fresh talents, with shortages in such critical sectors continuing to grow.
The organization also stressed that these shortages aren't just cyclical in nature, but rather reflect structural changes in society tied chiefly to demographic aging.
Stefano Scarpetta, Director for Employment, Labor and Social Affairs at the OECD said that even if immigration cannot solve all of the many challenges posed by an aging population in many parts of the OECD labor market, immigrants can still at least contribute to ease its impact.
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According to the OECD report, the rate of permanent or temporary professional migration remained well above pre-COVID19 levels -- despite a slight downturn reported in 2024.
Jean-Christophe Dumont, the head of the OECD's International Migration Division, said that these trends underscore "the important role that migration continues to play in a number of OECD countries."
However, the OECD paper also stressed that immigrants entering the labor market in any of its 38 member countries on average earn about 34% less than native workers of the same age and corresponding gender.
In addition to that, the study also stated that this is due to the fact that many immigrants tend to work in lower-paid sectors, while also pointing out that many end up being employed by employers who generally pay less in these sectors.
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