Demographic Trends Affecting Cities

Demographic Trends Affecting Cities Immigration

Outline • Trends • Implications for cities • City employment • Checklist for cities • Information resources

Trends • Rate of immigration is growing in MN • 15,456 arrivals in 2005 • 17th among US states in immigration Immigrants admitted with MN as intended state of residence US Dept of Homeland Security

MN immigrants are diverse Fast growing group: 2 in every 5 immigrants were from Africa in 2005 Trends Place of birth for MN foreign-born population, U.S. Census 2000

Trends • Immigrants come to MN for multiple reasons (2000 Census): • 63% came to join family members • 16% came to work • 12% came as refugees • MN leads the nation in the largest percentage of immigrants who are refugees or admitted through family reunification sponsorship

Trends • Immigrants have settled across the state • Large concentrations of immigrants live in: • St. Paul and Minneapolis; • Suburbs; and • Rural communities with food processing plants

Trends • Immigrants in MN have been attracted to jobs in: • Manufacturing • Hospitality • Construction • Food processing • Agriculture

Trends • Compared to immigrants of the late 19th & early 20th centuries, today’s immigrants are: • Learning English faster; • Less likely to return to their country of origin

Trends • Immigrants will become the largest source of new workers • 20% of new workers entering the US labor force between 2002-2012 will be Latino (Bureau of Labor Statistics) • MN has the highest Latino labor force participation rate in the county

Implications for Cities • A majority of MN cities over 1,500 population are experiencing community changes due to immigration (2007 LMC survey) • 12% “to a great degree” • 54% “to some degree” • 34% reported no immigration–related changes

Main diversity issues: Communication; Cultural differences; Housing; and Lack of community integration Barriers in addressing: Lack of money; Lack of will/ commitment from city officials & staff; Lack of time; Communication & cultural differences; Unsure of how to proceed; and Limited staff capacity Implications for Cities: 2007 survey findings

Implications for Cities Other challenges: • Undocumented immigrants • false identification or shared documents • Overcrowding in housing • Illegal parking of too many vehicles • General code compliance • Language barriers • Costs incurred in building multilingual staff or for interpretive services

Implications for Cities • The League’s cultural diversity work found 4 main reasons for cities to build ethnic & cultural diversity: • Civic responsibility • Economic development • Loss control • Community harmony

Implications for Cities • Civic responsibility • City officials are elected and appointed to: • ensure that residents received quality city services; • engage them in the city government process; and • to lead the community in setting and achieving a shared vision of the future.

Implications for Cities • Economic development • Ethnic populations contribute significantly to the economic base of MN communities • An estimated $6 billion in buying power • Provide a stable workforce • Are engaged in entrepreneurship and job creation

Implications for Cities • Loss control • Cities face serious liability issues for noncompliance with civil rights laws • Cities must be aware of liability risks and work to reduce them

Implications for Cities • Community harmony • Existing residents likely have expectations about assimilation of newcomers • City leadership should encourage “bilateral assimilation:” • Both long-term residents and newcomers modify behaviors and expectations to accommodate each other

City Employment: Challenges • Younger generations of immigrant populations tend to be larger than the older generations • Retiring city staff are likely to be replaced by new immigrants • Immigrants may be hesitant to apply for city employment

City Employment: Challenges 2000 Census

City Employment: Opportunities • Cities need to reach out and recruit in culturally sensitive and nontraditional ways • Need for training in cultural competence to city employees working for and with diverse populations

Checklist for Cities • What is the projected future ethnic makeup of our community • How do we work with the state to understand future refugee populations • How much do we know about who currently lives in our community • Particular ethnic groups • What brought them here • Where they are living

Checklist for Cities • How does each immigrant group feel about our community • Do we know who the leaders or liaisons of immigrant populations are • Do we have strategies for reaching these communities • What is our outreach plan

Checklist for Cities • Is city staff trained to respond successfully to new residents • Language barriers • Are our city codes creating unique issues with immigrant populations

Checklist for Cities • Are we finding ways to encourage these populations to become engaged with our community • What type of messages do city officials send about welcoming newcomers • What is the human rights violation process available to members of ethnic populations

Checklist for Cities: Civic Engagement • What do we know about the culture from which they came and how that affects their view of city government • View of law enforcement • Are members of newcomer groups willing to cooperate with law enforcement

Checklist for Cities: City Employment • Are ethnic populations represented in our city workforce • Do they apply for positions • Have we taken any steps to affirmatively recruit and retain ethnic employees • Is our city staff trained in intercultural competency and able to reduce workplace conflict

Resources • U.S. Census Bureau http://www.census.gov/ • Professor Katherine Fennelly, Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, UMN • Professor Richard Alba, SUNY – Albany • Professor Victor Nee, Cornell University • National Research Council • Social Security Administration • Tom Stinson, Minnesota State Economist • Tom Gillapsy, Minnesota Demographer

Demographic Trends Affecting Cities