Vandy study says Mexican immigrants' jobs more dangerous

A new Vanderbilt University study [1] says that Mexican immigrants living in the United States are concentrated in jobs with high risks of fatality, yet they receive little compensation for these risks.

The “Immigrant Status and the Value of Statistical Life” study, conducted by Vanderbilt Law School professors Joni Hersch and W. Kip Viscusi, found that Mexican immigrants are in jobs with fatality rates more than one-third higher than other workers, but they are not compensated accordingly.

“In contrast, other immigrant groups are similar to native U.S. workers in both their job-risk levels and wage compensation for risk,” the report found.

Researchers used U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from the Current Population Survey and the New Immigrant Survey.

“Non-Mexican immigrants as a group are similar to native U.S. workers in terms of the average job risks they face and their compensation for those risks,” Viscusi said. “But Mexican immigrants are the outliers, especially when it comes to fatal injuries.”