Immigrants in Healthcare Occupations

• In Event: The Wellbeing of Immigrant Students, Parents, and Workers in the US

Abstract

Immigrants are an important part of Washington state’s workforce, employed in a vast array of occupations, including health care. The recent coronavirus pandemic has shed light on the importance of essential occupations, including health care, in which immigrants play a pivotal role. Despite being a large share of the U.S. health workforce, relatively little is known about the characteristics of immigrant health care workers, including those arriving with health care education and work experience and those who obtain their education and work experience here. Of particular concern is the underutilization of skills and education among immigrant health care workers when they are employed in occupations that require less education than the immigrants’ actual acquired level of education. 

This study examines the sociodemographic and occupational characteristics of native-born U.S. citizens, naturalized U.S. citizens, and noncitizens in the Washington state health care labor force using data from the 2018 American Community Survey. 

Results indicate that noncitizens were disproportionately concentrated in low-paid occupations compared with native-born and naturalized citizens. More than two in five noncitizens were personal care aides or nursing assistants (44.2%), compared to 18.4% of native-born citizens and 28.3% of naturalized citizens. An estimated 95,116 (32.0%) native-born citizens, 15,946 (31.9%) naturalized citizens, and 8,259 (37.2%) noncitizens were overeducated—had more education than required for entry—for the healthcare occupations they held in 2018.

Study findings indicate that noncitizens face greater labor market vulnerability and fewer opportunities to utilize their education, suggesting the need for policies to maximize immigrants’ full potential to meet critical health workforce needs.

Authors

• Arati Dahal, University of Washington
  Non-Presenting Co-Author

• Taylor B Rogers, University of Hawaii
  Presenting Author