Foreign-born workers made up 18.1% of the US labor force in 2022 — the most in 27 years of record-keeping, according to a report from the Department of Labor.
Immigrants’ record share of the US labor force in 2022 was up from 2021, when people born outside the US made up 17.4% of the American workforce. It’s the highest level on record since 1996, according to the Department of Labor’s annual report on foreign-born workers released last week, which surveyed about 60,000 households monthly.
The number of foreign- and native-born people aged 16 and up in the workforce totaled more than 164 million in 2022, according to the Thursday report. Of them, 29.8 million were immigrants, either working or actively seeking jobs — a 6.3% increase from the 1.8 million foreign-born workers in the US workforce in 2021.
The documents showed that foreign-born workers accounted for the majority of growth — 6% — of America’s labor force last year, while native-born workers only accounted for 1%.
The report also concluded that immigrants over age 16 are more likely to participate in the labor force than their US-born counterparts. In 2022, 65.9% of foreign-born workers were more likely to be employed or looking for jobs in the American labor market, compared to 61.5% of native workers.
When participation rates in the labor force were broken down by gender, immigrant men showed 77.4% participation — a dramatic difference from 66% of native men’s active involvement.
Women, however, showed similar participation rates whether foreign- or native-born. In 2022, 57.2% of immigrant women participated in the labor force, slightly more than the 55% of US-born women who participated.
When it came to earnings, foreign-born workers took home more on average in 2022. Full-time wage and salary workers born in the US brought home a median of $1,087 weekly, while immigrant weekly earnings averaged $945.
“In 2022, foreign-born workers continued to be more likely than native-born workers to be employed in service occupations, 21.6% versus 14.8%,” the report stated. Immigrants also held more jobs than their American counterparts in natural resource, construction and maintenance occupations — 13.9% versus 7.9% — and production, transportation and material moving occupations — 15.2% versus 12.1%.
Native-born workers, however, held more jobs in management, professional and related occupations — 44.7% versus 35.7% as well as sales and office occupations — 20.5% versus 13.6%.
Unemployment rate across immigrants saw a sharp decline, from 5.6% in 2021 to 3.4% in 2022. The percentage has yet to dip below its 2019 rate of 3.1% — before COVID obliterated the job market.
The jobless rate across native workers, meanwhile, saw a smaller shrink — from 5.3% in 2021 to 3.7% in 2022. The figure “is little changed from its pre-pandemic level of 3.8%.” the report noted.
The Department of Labor accounted for immigrants who were legally admitted to the US as well as refugees, temporary students and workers and undocumented immigrants.
It was unclear where surveyed workers were born.
The Department of Labor released the report just one week after Title 42 ended. The law, which was introduced by President Donald Trump in 2020, allowed US Border Patrol to reject all migrants from the US border, including those claiming asylum.
Immigrants looking to enter the US without proper documentation are now being processed under Title 8, a law that has been around for decades and co-existed alongside Title 42.
Title 8 applies to migrants from all nationalities, has longer processing times and can lead to deportation, a legal process that carries penalties. Unlike Title 42, those removed under Title 8 are usually banned from entering the US for five years and will be prosecuted if they try to enter the US again during that time.
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