Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Smuggling and Trafficking of Workers: A Brief Review and Analysis of the Economics of Illegal Migration

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
International Trade and International Finance

  • 2354 Accesses

Abstract

Studies on illegal labor migration to rich countries are strongly policy driven and welfare-centric. Border control and employer interdiction are the most popular policies for controlling illegal entries. We review a large body of literature on illegal immigration in general and smuggling and trafficking of workers in particular. A policy to lower exploitation from illegal migration is discussed with the help of an analytical note.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. 1.

    It is recently reported, however, that the illegal Mexican entry into USA has dropped 16 % in 2008 due to deployment of 3000 more border patrol and the tightening job market in construction and services (CNN 2008).

  2. 2.

    The only Indian to have arrived in USA in the year 1850, landed in Texas; US Bureau of Statistics.

  3. 3.

    These included conquest of Pannonia by Hungarians, Indo-Aryan conquest, Franks arriving in Francia, Seljuk invasion of Anatolia, Gaels coming to Ireland, Anglo-Saxon settlements in Britain etc.

  4. 4.

    Originally published as Bhagwati (1979), International factor movements and national advantage, 9th Ramaswami Lecture, Indian Economic Review 14, 73–100.

  5. 5.

    Skilled workers often vote against illegal immigration since it affects general conditions of living, increases crime and dependence on transfer payments go up. However, their jobs are not directly threatened by it. Presently, we leave out unemployment concerns of skilled workers. Further, the government’s objective function may directly include concern for illegal immigrants. We show that the use of tax and unemployment benefit is a means to tackle illegal immigration even if the objective function does not explicitly include such arguments.

References

  • Abella M (2003) Driving forces in Asian migration, in world migration report 2003. International Organization for Migration, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

  • Abella M (2000) Migration and employment of undocumented workers: do sanctions and amnesties work? In: Cinar D, Gächter A, Waldrauch H (eds) Irregular migration: dynamics. Impact, Policy Options, Vienna, European Centre Vienna, pp 205–215

    Google Scholar 

  • Bales K (1999) Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy, Berkeley: University of California Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandyopadhyay S (2006) Illegal immigration and second best import tariffs. Rev Int Econ 14(1):93–103

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bandyopadhyay S, Bandyopadhyay SC (1998) Illegal immigration—a supply side analysis. J Dev Econ 57(2):343–360

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bhagwati, Jagdish N (1979) International factor movements and national advantage. Indian Econ Rev 14:73–100

    Google Scholar 

  • Bhagwati, JN (1987) On the choice between capital and labor mobility. In: Feenstra R (ed) Essays in International Economic Theory by Bhagwati JN, vol. 2. MIT Press, Cambridge, pp 31–43

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjas GJ (1999) Immigration and welfare magnets. J Lab Econ 17:607–637

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • British Broadcasting Company, BBC (2008) Trafficking: a very modern slavery, BBC News Report by Stephanie Holmes (February 15)

    Google Scholar 

  • Card David (1990) The impact of the Mariel Boatlift on the Miami labor market. Ind Labor Relat Rev 43(2):245–257

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carter T (1999) Illegal immigration in an efficiency wage model. J Int Econ 49:385–401

    Google Scholar 

  • Chau N (2001) Strategic amnesty and credible immigration reform. J Labor Econ 19(3):604–634

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cho, S-Y, Dreher A, Neumayer E (2011) The spread of anti-trafficking policies—evidence from a new index, CEGE Discussion Paper 119, March

    Google Scholar 

  • CNN (2008), Immigration economics: Lou Dobbs reporting, March 21, 2008

    Google Scholar 

  • Department of State of United States of America. (2012). Trafficking In Persons Report, Washington DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Di Tommaso M, Shima I, Strøm S, Bettio F (2009) As bad as it gets: well-being deprivation of sexually exploited trafficked women. Eur J Polit Econ 25(2):143–162

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Djajić S (1999) Dynamics of immigration control. J Popul. Econ 12:45–61

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Djajic S (1987) Illegal aliens, unemployment and immigration. J Dev Econ 25:235–249

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Drbohlav D, Štych P, Dzúrová D (2013), Smuggled versus not smuggled across the Czech border. Int Migr Rev 47(1):207–238, Spring

    Google Scholar 

  • Epstein G, Heizler O (2007) Illegal migration, enforcement and minimum wage, IZA discussion paper # 2830, Bonn

    Google Scholar 

  • Epstein G, Weiss A (2001) A theory of immigration amnesties, CEPR discussion paper no. 2830, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Ethier WJ (1986) Illegal immigration: the host-country problem. Am Econ Rev 76(1):56–71

    Google Scholar 

  • Gaytan-Fregoso H, Lahiri S (2004) Controlling Illegal Immigration: Border Control vs Domest Enforcement. J Quant Econ New Ser Spec Issue 2(2):203–215

    Google Scholar 

  • Granville J (2004) From Russia without love: the “fourth wave” of global human trafficking. Demokratizatsiya, Winter

    Google Scholar 

  • Guzman M, Haslag J, Orrenius P (2008) Coyote crossings: the role of smugglers in illegal immigration and border enforcement, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, research department working paper 0201

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanson G, Robertson R, Spilimbergo A (1999) Does border enforcement protect U.S. workers from illegal immigration? National bureau of economic research working paper no. 7054, Cambridge: Mass

    Google Scholar 

  • Hillman A , Weiss A (1999) A theory of permissible illegal immigration. Eur J Polit Econ 15:585–604

    Google Scholar 

  • International Organization of Migration (2010) International migration. Spec Issue Spec Issue Hum Traffick 48(4):1–200

    Google Scholar 

  • International Organization for Migration (2000) Migrant trafficking and human smuggling in Europe: a review of the evidence with case studies from Hungary. International Organization for Migration, Poland and Ukraine, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

  • Karlson S, Katz E (2003) A positive theory of immigration amnesties. Econ Lett 78(2):231–239

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koslowski R (2011) The evolution of border controls as a mechanism to prevent Illegal Immigration. Report, Migration Policy Initiatives, February, Washington D C

    Google Scholar 

  • Kyle D, Koslowaski R (eds)(2001) Global human smuggling: comparative perspectives. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore

    Google Scholar 

  • Levitt S, Dubner S (2009) Freakonomics: A rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything. William Morrow Paperbacks, NY

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayr K (2007) Immigration and income redistribution: a political economy analysis. Public Choice 131(1):101–116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCreight M (2006) Smuggling of migrants, trafficking in human beings and irregular migration on a comparative perspective. Eur Law J 12(1):106–129

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Palivos T, Chong K (2010) Illegal immigration in a heterogeneous labor market. J Econ 101:21–47

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramaswami V.K (1968) International factor movement and the national advantage. Econ 35:309–310

    Google Scholar 

  • Singer A, Massey D (1997) The social process of undocumented border crossing, UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies Working Paper No. 27, Los Angeles

    Google Scholar 

  • Tamura Y (2010) Migrant smuggling, J Public Econ 94:540–548

    Google Scholar 

  • Thum M (2004) Controlling migration in an open labor market. Public Choice, Springer 119(3–4):425–443

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations (2000a) Protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, especially women and children, supplementing the United Nations convention against transnational organized crime, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations (2000b) Protocol against the smuggling of migrants by land, sea and air, supplementing the United Nations convention against transnational organized crime, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • UNODC (2009) Global Reporting on Trafficking in Persons, UN: Vienna

    Google Scholar 

  • US Department of State (2012), Trafficking in Persons Report 2012

    Google Scholar 

  • Vogel D, Cyrus N (2008) Irregular migration in Europe—doubts about the effectiveness of control strategies. Focus Migration Policy Brief, HWWI

    Google Scholar 

  • Woodland A, Yoshida C (2006) Risk preference, immigration policy and illegal immigration. J Dev Econ 81(2):500–513

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wheaton E, Schauer E, Galli T (2010) Economics of human trafficking. Int Migr Spec Issue Spec Issue Hum Traffic 48(4):114–141

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The author thanks an anonymous reviewer for useful comments. The usual disclaimer applies.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta, R-1, B. P. Township, Kolkata, 700094, India

    Saibal Kar

  2. Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn, Germany

    Saibal Kar

Authors
  1. Saibal Kar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Saibal Kar .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics, Jadavpur University, Jadavpur, Kolkata, India

    Malabika Roy

  2. Department of Economics, Jadavpur University, Jadavpur, Kolkata, West Bengal, India

    Saikat Sinha Roy

Appendix 1

Appendix 1

See Table A.1.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer India

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Kar, S. (2016). Smuggling and Trafficking of Workers: A Brief Review and Analysis of the Economics of Illegal Migration. In: Roy, M., Sinha Roy, S. (eds) International Trade and International Finance. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-2797-7_14

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation