Remittances in The Great Recession: A Look into the Effects on Latin American Migrants and the US Labor Markets

Abstract

This paper provides a quantitative analysis on the effect that remittances had on Latin American and Caribbean countries during the Great Recession. Within this framework one can learn about Latino migrants’ impact on US labor markets during the recession as well as how diminishing remittances across the years 2008-2011 affected remittance recipient countries. The impact the recession had on migrants living in the United States working in the construction, restaurant and bar, and agriculture industries were especially hit hard due to high levels of job loss across these job markets. Their ability to send money back home as well impacted the economies of the Latin American and Caribbean countries in the study.