Everyone always talks about the increase in the unskilled labor market as one of the effects of immigration in the US. However, one story that has been overlooked and under appreciated over this time period. A large number of high-skilled Latin Americans have immigrated into the country as well. According to reports, as many as 30 million Latin Americans have entered the country with advanced degrees since 1996 and an additional 10 million have entered since then. This effect has been taking place for a very long time from a wide variety of countries from around the world, but recently several South American countries have been exporting the most workers. This trend has coincided with the growth of the middle class. Countries such as Mexico, Colombia, Peru, and Chile have seen a growing middle class, and the allure of the American dream inspires many to chase their dreams to another country. Most of these highly skilled workers end up in very prestigious American companies, especially those in Silicon Valley. California has remained a favorite for many of these workers because the state already has a large Spanish population and there is still a decent job market for those skilled workers. It still remains the same that jobs have always been the primary motivation for coming into the country with the potential of rising to the top. Areas in Europe have had high amounts of unemployment with Spain being one of the worst. Unemployment has hit 26% in the country and is even higher for the younger generation looking for jobs.
Some have described this phenomena as the “brain drain” of developing countries, where individuals with technical skills and knowledge leave the country leaving a serious challenge for the growth and development of many struggling countries. Nations in the Caribbean have seen the worst of this effect with upwards of 90 percent of skilled workers fleeing the country for opportunities abroad. Globalization and technological improvements have only made it easier to travel and to acquire more knowledge. The US has intentionally made it very easy to study in the US as a student. Once many of these young men and women have moved into the country there is all the more reason to stay and very little reason to move out.
It is hard to come up with any solution for the socioeconomic type issue from “brain drain”. At the same time the US appears to be a beneficiary of this trend. However, I do think it is an issue that everyone in the world should care about. Taking this trend and extrapolating it out over a long time span and a great deal of potential output could go away for the countries that need it the most. Every now and then I hear stories about immigrants that come to the US and make money but end up sending money back home. This mitigates the effects of the brain drain, but it is not a remedy to the problem. Only time will tell the outcome of the phenomena.
thewanderingaustinite 