Files
Abstract
This paper models the assimilation process of migrants and shows evidence of the
complementarity between their destination experience and upon-arrival human capital.
Bayesian learning and dynamics of matching are modeled and empirically assessed, using
panel data of wages from the Bangkok labor market in Thailand. The analysis
incorporates (1) the heterogeneity of technologies and products, characteristic of urban
labor markets, (2) imperfect information on migrants' types and skill demanded in the
markets, and (3) migrants' optimal learning over time. Returns to destination experience
emerge endogenously. Estimation results, which control migrants' selectivity by first-differencing
procedures, show that (1) schooling returns are lower for migrants than for
natives, (2) the accumulation of destination experience raises wages for migrants, (3) the
experience effect is greater for more-educated agents, i.e., education and experience are
complementary, and (4) the complementarity increases as destination experience
accumulates. The results imply that more-educated migrants have higher learning
efficiency and can perform tasks of greater complexity, ultimately yielding higher wage
growth in the destination market. Simulations show that, due to the complementarity,
wages for different levels of upon-arrival human capital diverge in the migrants'
assimilation process.