The recent improvement in the country’s economy has created an increase in blue collar jobs and the demand for immigrant workers. Casa de Maryland, which has five job centers around the state, was able to place19, 000 immigrants in jobs during June of 2010 compared to 16,000 job placements during the same time last year. According to research, with the upturn of the economy, immigrants are receiving jobs at a much higher rate and benefiting more than native US citizens. Unemployment rates lowered from 9.3% to 8.7% for immigrant workers whereas the rate for native born workers increased from 9.2% to 9.7%. In addition to unemployment, hiring rates are also higher for working immigrants than native born US citizens. Since the recovery, immigrants are also being employed into different types of jobs than they were before the recession. Many worked in construction during the recession but now immigrant workers are being hired for positions in hospital service and education. One reason why immigrant workers may be receiving more jobs than native born US citizens is their flexibility with wages and earnings. Though immigrant workers may be receiving benefits during the economic recovery, they still face many challenges; their unemployment rate is still twice what it was before the recession.
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