Internal migration and earnings: Do migrant entrepreneurs and migrant employees differ?

Abstract

People move from one region of a country to another not only for employment but also for business opportunities. Their earnings, relative to those of comparable local employees and local entrepreneurs, reflect the efficiency of internal migration policies. Investigating a large number of migrants and non-migrants in Vietnam, we find that while migrant entrepreneurs earn more than local entrepreneurs, migrant employees earn less than their local counterparts. Moreover, regions with unalloyed socialist norms (North Vietnam) enhance migrants' advantages, leading to higher earnings, whereas migrants in regions with pro-entrepreneurship norms (South Vietnam) find it difficult to compete with the locals.