They come and they put | Special Report: The Economic Contribution …

Discrimination against immigrants exists worldwide and Argentina is no exception. Argentines estimate that there are 33 immigrants per 100 inhabitants, while there are only 5, according to a survey conducted by the consulting firm Ipsos. 100 years ago, 30% of the population was foreign and today, this figure does not reach 5%, says sociologist Lelio Mármora, a specialist in migration. Less than half of the population believes that immigrants strengthen the country with their socio-economic contribution, says UADE's report on immigration and minorities. However, the data do not accompany this perception. A document published last year by the OECD and the ILO points out that the number and characteristics of immigrants in Argentina suggest that their current economic impact is positive, "but not very important". Statistics also show that the rise or fall in the unemployment rate is not related to the presence of foreigners in the country. In 1994, unemployment reached 18.4%, compared to 25% in 2002 and 5.9% in 2015, but the proportion of immigrants remained stable during this period.

Foreigners generate an economic growth of 4% and a net tax contribution reaching 2% of GDP, according to the publication "How immigrants contribute to the Argentine economy" of the ILO. In addition, they contribute a billion dollars a year to the wealth generation of the country, calculated based on the work done for a survey on Mármora.

Foreigners have higher employment rates and a lower unemployment rate than Argentineans in the labor market. Gabriela Liguori, general coordinator of the Argentine Commission for Refugees and Migrants, explained the reason for these figures: "Those who emigrate do so to work, is their first goal upon their arrival." While there are networks they can not be maintained for a long time.This is why placement is an imperative, so they are often forced to accept precarious jobs. "

In Argentina, the proportion of migrant workers in the informal sector is larger. They work longer (6 hours more per week on average) and earn up to 15% less than an Aboriginal worker. Guillermo Dema, Migration Specialist at the International Labor Organization, explained that state implementation of policies to improve this situation could increase the contribution of immigrants to the economy: "In countries where The smaller the wage and informality, the greater the economic contribution, better work implies better wages, higher taxation and economic integration ". Only with the payment of VAT on any purchase, immigrants contribute between $ 1,000 and $ 1,500 million a year, added Mármora, director of the UNTREF Institute for Migration Policies. In addition, the proportion of foreign-born persons who are self-employed is higher than that of Aboriginals. "If they do not find work, they create it," added Dema.

According to specialists, the contribution of immigrants to the labor market does not depend so much on their level of education, but rather on filling positions in sectors where scarcity is rare. One of the new trends observed is the arrival of immigrants in the health sector. Marcela Cerrutti, a researcher at the Center for Population Studies, said the activity included a growing number of immigrants in nursing and medicine. "The population of the capital is very old and there is a significant presence of migrants among caregivers of the elderly," said Cerrutti, who is also a doctor of sociology and specializes in demography. Dema pointed out that a new phenomenon was occurring due to the increasing immigration of Venezuelans in recent years: "It is a highly skilled population that provides vacant technical positions in the oil and gas sector. , where it has been difficult to cover them in the Argentine labor market ".

The economic contribution does not depend on the qualification. In this sense, Mármora emphasized the importance of Bolivian immigration: "In most cities, agricultural cables are Bolivians that produce fruits and vegetables consumed in the city". The 30 percent of what fruits, vegetables and horticulture consume comes from the outskirts of Buenos Aires province, where 80 percent of workers are in the hands of Bolivian workers, said Gonzalo Lantarón, coordinator Open Institute for Development and Public Policy Studies.

Research in the country shows that, although each group has its niche, immigrants are more concentrated in the construction, manufacturing, trade, services such as hotels or restaurants and domestic services. . And they are less represented than Argentineans in financial, professional, scientific and educational activities. Roberto Benencia, principal investigator of Conicet, explained that immigrants have a positive impact on the economy by carrying out activities that the native people do not cover. "Foreigners work as brickmakers, plasterers, workers, singles or waiters, activities that require a lot of effort, that have neither Saturday nor Sunday and are considered difficult or degraded by the natives," he says.

When badyzed with a gender perspective, it is observed that immigrant women have a positive impact on Argentine women. In this sense, Caref's Gabriela Liguori explained: "Without migrant women who clean the house or take care of children, Argentine women could not develop in the workplace. scaffolding that makes the work of Argentine women viable, especially among middle-clbad professionals. "In Argentina, 54% of employees born in Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay are employed in the labor market. cleaning, take care of people or attend at home, so that immigration and indigenous female labor are positively correlated. The information published by the ILO comes from a report by the American Economic Journal entitled "Unconditional Immigration and Supply of Highly Qualified Workforce".

According to the specialists consulted, no academic study indicates a correlation between immigration and the loss of employment of Argentine workers. But the triumph of prejudices about statistics is not a local phenomenon. Cerrutti badured that "it is clbadic in Argentina and in the world that in times of crisis, immigrants are the easiest scapegoat". Gonzalo Lantarón of the Open Institute for the Development and Study of Public Policies discusses issues relating to the nationality of immigrants: "Before, it was criticized that the Spaniards and Italians pbaded over the British. Now, they criticize Latin American and non-European immigrants.The construction of prejudice has no judgment "