International migration and labour flexibility in the context of NAFTA

Abstract

In this paper we present a frame of reference for analysing the possible impact of economic integration under NAFTA on the size, composition and forms of migration between Mexico and the United States. Our argument is that the source of any possible impact on migration ought not to be sought in NAFTA but in the underlying processes of change in production operations. In particular, we contend that the new forms of migration are indicative of structural changes related to changes in labour market dynamics caused by the various forms of labour flexibility introduced in both Mexico and the United States. Both the neoliberal policy implemented in Mexico and economic restructuring in the United States have facilitated the reconfiguration of the two countries' trade relations in a context of more integrated economic and industrial relations. In this regard, labour force mobility within the bloc will depend not so much on the integration process in itself as on the linkage between work processes and labour markets in each economy and in the bloc as a whole.