Jennifer. Holdaway et al. Different contexts, common concerns: migration, social development and social protection in China and the US
Website of the paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42379-018-0004-1
Chunguang Wang Local governance in China: realizing the citizens’ rights of migrants
Abstract Previous research has considered government behavior as a single phenomenon and researched the impact of governance on the realization of migrants’ citizens’ rights from the point of view of the political system and policy. But in fact, the government is a complex system in which there are differences not only between agencies, but also between different levels of government, and the latter in particular has an important impact on the citizenship rights of migrants. This paper uses education and health to observe the role of different levels of government in determining the citizenship rights of migrants and the mechanisms that shape their attitudes and behavior. It argues that in implementing central policy local government engages in the strategies of “interpretation and adaptation” and that their use of these mechanisms is dependent on local welfare and related conditions.
Keywords Governance · Citizenship rights · Migrants · Interpretation and adaptation · Local welfare
Website of the paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42379-018-0002-3
Luis Ricardo Fraga and Bryan Wilcox-Archuleta Comparative social rights: status and integration in the US
Abstract In this essay we develop a framework for better understanding how a focus on enhancing the social rights of immigrants and migrants can lead to greater levels of social incorporation for these groups into their destination countries and/ or communities. First, we discuss how the concepts of social rights and incorporation have been used in the social sciences to understand migrants and immigrants. Second, we critically discuss models of immigrant incorporation derived from studies of the US and Europe to demonstrate the value of developing comparative frameworks across distinct countries and communities. Third, we develop and apply the categories of status and integration to discuss how social rights derived from public policy can serve to inhibit or facilitate the effective incorporation of immigrants and migrants. Fourth, we describe how subnational, state-level governments have become increasingly critical actors in affecting both status and integration in the United States. We demonstrate that social rights and incorporation cannot be understood in the US today without an appreciation for variation across distinct state governments. Lastly, we conclude with a consideration of how our analysis makes very clear that government officials are in key positions to determine the scope and depth of immigrant and migrant social rights and incorporation in ways that can simultaneously serve the long-term interests of immigrants, migrants, and the nation state as a whole.
Keywords Social rights · Incorporation · Immigrant · Migrant · Status · Integration · United States · States · Nation-state
Website of the paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42379-018-0001-4
Zhanxin Zhang Employment marketization, social security inclusion and rights equalization of rural migrants
Abstract Against the backdrop of stagnation in hukou reform, a new theme in research on internal migration in China has emerged. Are reforms aimed at equalizing citizens’ rights effective in promoting the rights and position of rural migrants? This paper proposes that a dual transition is taking place in China, one that is affecting the market and another in the area of social policy. The paper examines two lines of reform measures intended to equalize rights: the marketization of employment and the development of inclusive social policy. This investigation on the reforms shows that rural migrants to cities have attained citizenship-based rights to employment and job-related social insurance. This paper also discusses the issue of local citizenship as a by-product of China’s reform and development. The paper’s findings imply that rural migrants are beneficiaries of China’s dual-transition.
Keywords Hukou system · Rural migrants · Market transition · Social policy · Citizenship
Website of the paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42379-018-0003-2
Van C. Tran and Katnarine M. Donato The social provision of healthcare to migrants in the US and in China
Abstract This article develops a comparative analysis of healthcare provision to migrants in the US and in China. It proceeds in three parts. First, we begin by describing the growth of the unauthorized population and trace the evolution of social provision of healthcare to immigrants, highlighting the restrictive nature of federal social provisions and greater autonomy of state and local governments in redefining eligibility criteria in the US. Second, we examine the impact of legal status on healthcare access and utilization among Mexicans, using original data from the 2007 Hispanic Healthcare Survey and the Mexican Migration Project. We find that unauthorized immigrants report the lowest level of healthcare access and utilization. Third, we then outline a China–US comparative agenda, pointing to similarities between the two migrant flows. In China, recent developments of healthcare coverage for both rural and urban populations have increased access to healthcare, but rural-to-urban migrants still report many barriers in receiving care and are often left out of this growing safety net. We then close with a discussion of lessons learned from the US experience and remaining questions for future comparative research.
Keywords Unauthorized migrants · Rural-to-urban migrants · Social provision · Healthcare access · Comparative research · US and China
Website of the paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42379-018-0006-z
Jennifer Holdaway Educating the children of migrants in China and the United States: a common challenge?
Abstract The education of the children of migrants is a policy issue of great importance in both China and the United States. While first generation migrants have generally completed their education in the place of origin, and some may return, their children will generally remain in the receiving place. Both pragmatic and moral considerations therefore require that schools equip them to participate fully in society as workers and citizens. This paper considers what we know about the education of children of low-skilled international labor migrants in the United States and the children of rural–urban migrants in China. It finds that although one migration flow is international and the other internal, the similar background characteristics of migrants create common challenges in both contexts; and the structure of both education systems serves to exacerbate underlying socio-economic inequalities. Residential segregation, unequal funding and formal and informal tracking processes concentrate migrant children in poor quality schools, resulting in low average levels of attainment and high drop-out rates. There are some obvious steps that could be taken in China to expand opportunities for migrant children, especially with regard to the transition to post-compulsory education, which is still constrained by their parents’ household registration status ( hukou ). However, the experience of the United States shows that expanding access , while necessary, is not sufficient to level the playing field. To do this, targeted investments must be made to meet the specific educational needs of migrant children.
Keywords Migrants · Children · Education · Social mobility · China · United States
Website of the paper https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42379-018-0005-0
