Immigration and Social Benefits in a Mediterranean Welfare State: The Case of Spain

The aim of this paper is to explore the impact of immigration on the Spanish Welfare State nowadays. Using two different household surveys, both the reception of state cash transfers and the use of public health care insurance by nationals and immigrants are analysed. Controlling by observable socio-demographic characteristics, we find that immigrants receive fewer cash transfers than locals and do not exhibit a statistically significant higher use of health care services than nationals. The nature of the Spanish Welfare State compared to its European correlates and the age composition of the immigrant population, concentrated in active age, can help to explain these findings.Immigration; Welfare State; Spain; cash transfers; health care

The impact of the minimum wage on Spanish youth: Evidence from a natural experiment

This work assesses the impact of the minimum wage on youth employment, unemployment and education enrolment in Spain. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we take advantage of the fact that the minimum wage for people aged 16 and 17 years old, which was approximately two thirds the level of the standard minimum wage, was raised to reach full convergence with the latter in a period of three years (from 1995 to 1998). The empirical analysis suggests that this policy intervention depressed the employment levels of the affected group, raised unemployment among them and decreased the probability of remaining in formal education.minimum wage, Spain, difference-in-differences, employment

La economía de la reducción del tiempo de trabajo.

Sin resume

Health care utilization and immigration in Spain

The aim of this work is to analyze the use of health care services by immigrants in Spain. Using a nationally representative health survey from 2006-2007 that allows overcoming problems present in previous studies and negative binomial and hurdle models, it is found that there is no statistically significant difference in the patterns of visits to physicians and hospital stays between migrants and natives in Spain. However, immigrants have a lower access to specialists and visit emergency rooms with higher frequency than nationals.health care; immigration; Spain; access; equity

La inmigración, mercado de trabajo y estado de bienestar en España

El 28 de marzo de 2014 el Catedrático de Economía Aplicada de la Universidad de Salamanca, Dr. Rafael Muñoz de Bustillo, impartió una conferencia en el Aula Magna de la Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales de la Universidad de Málaga bajo el título “LA INMIGRACIÓN, MERCADO DE TRABAJO Y ESTADO DE BIENESTAR EN ESPAÑA”. Durante la misma, el conferenciante abordó las principales características del fenómeno migratorio en España a lo largo de las últimas décadas, centrándose particularmente en cuestiones relacionadas con el mercado de trabajo (importancia, tipos de empleos, salarios…), protección social (prestaciones monetarias, sanidad,…), así como las conexiones existentes entre inmigración y pobreza en nuestro país.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec

WP 60 - Sample bias, weights and efficiency of weights in a continuous web voluntary survey

Using micro data from a continuous voluntary web survey, the Wage Indicator, the paper analyses the type of bias that such a sampling method produces and discusses a methodology to weight the data in order to correct such bias and make it possible to run analyses to obtain results and conclusions applicable to the whole population. In order to evaluate the efficiency of the weighting methodology to solve the potential sample bias of web surveys, the results are confronted with those obtained from an alternative standard labour survey dealing with the same issues. Since the Wage Indicator is a survey oriented to labour market issues, we considered that a labour market case study was most appropriate for the evaluation of the results. The method of evaluation followed is to calculate mean salaries, inequality indexes and salary regressions before and after implementing the weights using the Wage Indicator Survey data for Spain. The results are compared with those reached using the Structure of Earnings Survey, a wage survey run by the Spanish Statistical Institute.web surveys, data analysis, labour market JEL Classification: C42, C81, J01

From guests to hosts: a first whole picture of immigrant-native wage differentials in Spain

This article analyses the immigrant-native wage differentials in Spain, which only recently has become a host country. The paper exploits the Earnings Structure Survey 2006, which is the first nationally representative sample of both foreigner and Spaniard employees. Using the Machado-Mata econometric procedure, wage differentials between locals and foreigners are decomposed into the gap related to characteristics and that due to different returns to endowments (i.e., discrimination). We found that, in absolute terms, the latter component grows across wage distribution, reflecting the existence of a kind of glass ceiling consistent with the evidence of over-education found by previous research.immigration; wage differentials; Spain; quantile regression

How are you doing in your grandpa’s country? Labour market performance of Latin American immigrants in Spain.

This paper analyses wage differentials between local and foreign workers from Latin America and the Caribbean in Spain, which was traditionally a country of emigrants, being precisely Hispanic America the main host region of Spanish migrants during the 19th and 20th centuries. In addition, we also compute earnings. The paper exploits the Earnings Structure Survey 2006, which is the first nationally representative sample of both foreign and Spanish employees. Using the Machado-Mata econometric procedure, wage differentials between locals and foreigners are decomposed into the gap related to characteristics and the one due to different returns on endowments (i.e., discrimination). First, we find that, in absolute terms, the latter component grows across wage distribution, reflecting the existence of a kind of glass ceiling. Second, there seem not to be significant wage gap between Latin American and the last of foreign employees, probably because non-native workers are employed in low-skill jobs.Immigration; Wage differentials; Latin America; Spain; Quantile regression.

Immigration and the welfare state in Spain

Este trabajo estudia las relaciones existentes entre inmigración y Estado de bienestar en España desde una triple perspectiva. En primer lugar, se analiza el papel que las prestaciones sociales hayan podido tener en la experiencia inmigratoria española, como factor de atracción de los inmigrantes. A continuación, se estudia de qué manera la inmigración puede afectar al mantenimiento del Estado de bienestar, tanto investigando los posibles efectos del aumento de la diversidadétnica, lingüística y cultural sobre el respaldo de la población nacional al Estado de bienestar, como su efecto sobre el gasto social en materia de prestaciones monetarias y salud. Por último, y cambiando de perspectiva, se pone en valor la contribución de la inmigración al sostenimiento del mercado privado de servicios de bienestar, especialmente en lo relativo al cuidado a dependientes. This paper studies the relationships between immigration and the welfare state in Spain from a triple perspective. First, the role social benefits may have had on the Spanish immigrant experience as a pull factor is analysed. The paper goes on to study the way immigration can affect the maintenance of the welfare state, investigating both the possible effects of the increased ethnic, linguistic and cultural diversity on the support of the national population for the welfare state, as well as its effect on social spending in terms of monetary and health benefits. Lastly, and changing perspective, the contribution of immigration to the maintenance of the private market for welfare services is assessed, especially in terms of caring for dependents.

Crisis, post-crisis y Estado de Bienestar: ¿hacia dónde transita el Modelo Social Europeo?

La crisis económica, su gestión y la post-crisis han tenido un efecto innegable sobre el desarrollo de los Estados de Bienestar en Europa. Las reformas estructurales desarrolladas han afectado gravemente la fortaleza del Estado de Bienestar ya sea por dirigirse directamente contra él, ya sea por los daños colaterales de la política de ajuste fiscal desarrollada. Este artículo tiene como objetivo valorar hasta qué punto la crisis económica y su gestión, impulsada y avalada por el ECO-FIN (Consejo de Asuntos Económicos y Financieros de la Unión Europea), ha afectado a unos Estados de Bienestar europeos que hasta la crisis se habían mostrado, en las grandes líneas de sus actuaciones, razonablemente resilientes a los ataques de los que habían sido objeto durante décadas. Recibido: 23 septiembre 2015 Aceptado: 27 enero 2016 Publicación en línea: 30 abril 201