The Economist | 12/2/2020
In some countries migrant workers are sending more money home this year. That may be a bad sign
MIGRANTS LIVING in countries with high rates of covid-19 have had an especially hard year. Across the rich world, unemployment among foreign-born workers has risen faster than among the rest of the population. Migrants are more likely to work in industries worst affected by the pandemic, such as hospitality and construction. In America, employment among migrants fell by 21% in April compared with February; for native-born workers the drop was just 14%. Their misfortune has a knock-on effect. One in nine people around the world rely on the money that migrant workers send home, according to the United Nations.
In April the World Bank predicted that these remittances would fall by 20% this year compared with 2019. That would be four times the percentage drop in 2009 caused by the global financial crisis. But last month the bank made a correction. Remittances to lower- and middle-income countries will shrink by only 7% this year, it now reckons. In Latin America, the amount will barely budge, falling by 0.2%. Why have remittances held up so well?
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Naomi Cohen | journalist 