JOB SEARCH, ETHNIC NETWORKS, AND MIGRATORY STATUS. THREE STUDIES ON IMMIGRANT INCORPORATION IN THE ITALIAN LABOUR MARKET

Traditional human capital explanations of immigrant labour market disadvantage only partially clarify the persistent divergence in the occupational performance of ethnic minorities, that has been observed in the Italian context. The thesis contributes to the comprehension of processes and mechanisms affecting the immigrant labour market incorporation in Italy, by considering two different perspectives, that emphasise the importance of contextual variables. On the one hand, the work investigates how interpersonal networks activated in the job search process, that for minority groups reflect the ethnic community support, affect the immigrant occupational concentration in lower quality segments of the Italian labour market. On the other hand, the study considers institutional barriers that some immigrant categories face, once the receiving country is accessed, by looking at labour market pathways of immigrants with a different entry status. Firstly, using a combining 2009-2014 Italian Labour Force Survey data-set, the thesis provides an immigrant-native comparison of job finding methods and offers an analysis of changes in the ethic penalty according to different job finding strategies. Furthermore, using the 2011-12 Italian multipurpose survey Social Condition and Integration of Foreign Citizens (SCIFC), the study considers various labour market outcomes related to the use of different contact persons, activated by immigrants to obtain relevant information. Particular emphasis is given to the distinction between ethnic and non-ethnic ties. Finally, using the SCIFC data-set, the thesis describes the composition of the immigrant population that accessed Italy in the last decades, by category of entrance, distinguishing EU and non-EU migrants and considering differences by reason for migration, an approach that allows to include various non-economic categories (family, humanitarian, study). Furthermore, adopting a dynamic approach, the study analyses employment outcomes of immigrant entry categories. Results show that, first, immigrants and natives follow different job finding strategies. Second, immigrant native occupational differentials are affected by the structure of relationships in which they are embedded. Particularly, immigrants obtain lower occupational returns by using interpersonal relationships to find a job. Third, the (few) chances of accessing higher qualified occupations substantively increase for immigrants who activate job finding contacts with natives. Fourth, co-ethnic networks can also have beneficial effects, providing immigrants with a great circulation of information, that allow to rapidly access employment. Finally, some immigrant entry categories experience a delayed transition to employment and retain relevant gaps over time. Differences by migratory status also affect the chance of accessing irregular employment, that in Italy attract a large proportion of immigrant workers.