The process of family reunification among original guest-workers in Germany

This article examines the process of family reunification among original guest-workers in Germany. Contrary to conventional accounts, the findings indicate that the bulk of family reunification occurred for the most part before the halt on recruitment was imposed in the mid-seventies. Using data fro...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor: González Ferrer, Amparo
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2007
País:España
Recursos:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/93164
Acesso em linha:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/93164
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Family Reunification
Joint Couple Migration
Staggered Family Migration
Immigration Policy
Context of Reception
ddc:300
ddc:301
Descrição
Resumo:This article examines the process of family reunification among original guest-workers in Germany. Contrary to conventional accounts, the findings indicate that the bulk of family reunification occurred for the most part before the halt on recruitment was imposed in the mid-seventies. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP), I find that approximately half of wives who joined their husbands in Germany migrated in the same year as their husbands. In fact, it does not seem that the ban on labor recruitment had an accelerating effect on the reunification process, as it is generally assumed. According to the obtained results, the reform of the children’s allowances in 1975 had a clearer and stronger impact in explaining the family migration decisions of original guestworkers in Germany. On the other hand, variables related to the macroeconomic conditions at the origin and destination countries, the size of the household, the age of the children, and the labor market characteristics of the mother are important to account for differences in the time that elapsed until male immigrants had their families reunified abroad.