The following presents a man and women from two different families migrating from Acapulco, Mexico to San Francisco, California. The two people are in their early 20s and have only grade school education. Their experience in the 1920s is compared to what it would be in the 2000s.
For this case example, a young man and woman, each from two different families, and each with only grade school education, migrated to the U.S. to seek new and better working and living conditions. Acapulco, Mexico in the 1920s consisted of few opportunities in the formal labor market. This city includes a higher proportion of female-headed households with lower levels of education and higher rates of unemployment for males and in particular females (Fussell and Zenteno 18). Men and women in their 20s have low labor force participation rates and women have lower rates than men, however rates are higher among all age groups for males and females in U.S. border states such as California, compared to Mexico (Peach and Williams 45).
Despite high hopes, these two individuals were likely to meet with harsh conditions in San Francisco as well. Labor market in Border States such as California includes high rates of unemployment compared to the national average and employment is found in low wage industries. These conditions existed in part since border region population growth rates are high and there tends to be a lower median age in these areas. A large number of young people result in a smaller amount of people that are of working age. Young people tend to enter the work market in positions with low wages. Education differences also explain low wages and unemployment in these areas (Peach and Williams 44). Migration from Mexico to the U.S. in early times (1920s) resulted in Mexican workers in the U.S. working almost exclusively in the agricultural industry (Greenwood and Tienda 253). Women more than men had difficulty finding work in wage ear...