Abstract

In many cases, regional labour markets show persistent differences in employment rates and wage levels - and thus in living conditions - and migration does not lead to convergence. In this project, the migration from East Germany to West Germany in the mid and late 1990s is investigated on the basis of biographical data from Biografiedaten ausgewählter Sozialversicherungsträger in Deutschland (BASiD) and the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). In comparison to the migration events between 1989 and 1992, East-West migration took place on a comparatively low scale from 1993 onwards - despite the persistence of major disparities in the labour markets. This project focuses on persons who were already active in the labor market in the GDR in 1989. The causal employment and wage returns are estimated using a dynamic treatment approach. First results based on the BASiD data show strong positive migration effects, especially for unemployed East Germans. Furthermore, based on the SOEP, we investigate whether non-monetary barriers can explain the comparatively low level of migration despite high returns.