About the data
The Special Licence Quarterly Labour Force Survey (SLQLFS) collects rich information on individuals living in the UK and their labour market status at a very detailed geographical level. Because of its large sample size and stratified design, it it is ideal to study phenomena linked to immigrant populations.
In this survey data, researchers can find information on immigrants' socio-demographic characteristics - things such as education, age, year of arrival, ethnic group and country of birth - as well as their labour market outcomes, such as employment status, job search methods and earnings. Importantly, it is possible to locate the Local Authority Districts for England and Wales and the Council Areas for Scotland where immigrants live or work, allowing us to investigate if and how local labour markets influence their outcomes.
How the data were used
The project 'Does it pay for immigrants to use social networks?' aimed to shed light on the mechanisms through which UK immigrants find jobs - and in particular if relying on friends and family is associated with labour market penalties.
Twenty-eight waves of SLQLFS data collected between 2003 and 2009 were used to construct variables of personal social networks and to investigate how these networks affect immigrants' labour market outcomes. A particular feature of the analysis is the use of local labour market attributes such as unemployment rates, vacancies, house prices and average wages.
About the author
Corrado Giulietti, Christian Schluter and Jackie Wahba are all affiliated with the Centre for Population Change at the University of Southampton.
To view and download the data GO TO ESDS