| Arturo Gonzalez
University of Arizona
Immigrant English ability and wages: Evidence from the National Adult Literacy Survey
FINAL REPORT:
This study investigates the factors related to proficiency in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing English among female and male immigrants using data from the 1992 National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS). ESL courses, education and years in the U.S. are found to especially affect English proficiency. The study also investigates the earnings-English relationship for each of these four skills to establish which is more valuable in the labor market. The evidence suggests that while for men the returns to oral proficiency are greater than the returns to literacy skills, female immigrants do not experience higher wages from proficiency. Rather, English ability affects the decision to enter the labor force. The study concludes that English acquisition is a dynamic process, rather than static as argued by supporters of English-Only legislation. An increased role for ESL courses in the acquisition of English is suggested as an alternative policy to English-Only laws as long as their marginal cost is less than their marginal benefit. This policy would also have the added benefit of increasing the wages of men, while the benefits of ESL for women would be social.
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