Analysis of data from the 1981 Australian Census indicates that there are considerable differences between the occupational distributions of the native and foreign born. Immigrants from non-English speaking countries are at a far greater disadvantage than their counterparts from English-speaking countries. Estimates of probability models of occupational attainment suggest that the inferior labor market position of immigrants from non-English speaking countries results from the relatively poor minor occupational gains they derive from additional years of education.
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