Jobs or amenities? Destination choices of migrant engineers in the USA*

The paper analyses factors influencing the destinations chosen by 13 different categories of migrant engineers in the USA between 1994 to 1999. Migration patterns are analysed with the aid of fractional-response regression models. The objective is to assess the relative weight of employment opportunities and selected amenities in guiding the migratory shifts of these workers. Engineers are divided into two categories representing individuals of working age and those who are either retired or are close to retirement. The results indicate that local employment opportunities have a dominant impact on the destinations chosen by the former group and that amenities play virtually no role in this regard. However, warmer winters have some modest positive effect on destinations chosen by the latter group.