Ohio: State-by-State Immigration Trends
Courtesy of the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota
Prepared in 2012 for the Task Force on US Economic Competitiveness at Risk: A Midwest Call to Action on Immigration Reform
Introduction
Ohio has a small and slow-growing foreign-born population. Yet increases in the foreign-born work force are key to the future
prosperity of the state and the Midwest. As is the case across the entire United States, the most dramatic demographic shift in
Ohio has been the aging of its population—a development that increases the tax burden on young workers who make payroll
contributions to cover the costs of Social Security and Medicare. A steady influx of immigrant workers is essential to maintaining
a young and productive workforce.
Foreign-Born Population
As of 2010, Ohio’s immigration population was 4% of its state population, about one-third of the national average.
Educational Attainment
Immigrants in Ohio are both more and less educated than native-born residents. As a group, they are both more likely to have a
bachelors, graduate or professional degree and less likely to have a high school diploma than their native-born counterparts.
Nationally and throughout the Midwest, children of immigrants tend to attain higher levels of education than their parents.
Educational attainment is a very important dimension of integration, as it influences potential income and English language
proficiency.
Employment and Wages
Since 2000, immigrants have been working in middle-skilled positions at a higher rate than any other kind of employment. Yet,
the greatest project numbers of new jobs require little education or training.
English Proficiency
As is the case across the Midwest, a large majority of Ohio’s foreign-born residents have a strong command of English.
Geographic Distribution
Even with dramatic growth in rural Ohio’s foreign-born population, the state’s largest immigrant communities are concentrated in
suburban Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati.
Labor Force Data
The proportion of immigrants in the US labor force almost doubled between 1990 and 2010—from 9 to 16 percent, at a time
when the percentage of native-born workers decreased from 91 to 84%. Although the foreign-born workforce makes up a
relatively small percentage of the total labor force, it grew at a rate that was seven times faster rate than that for the native-born
workforce. Forty percent of immigrant workers in Ohio were born in Asia, a quarter are from Europe and 21% are from Latin
America.
Naturalization and Voting Patterns
A clear measure of integration is the rate at which immigrants become naturalized citizens of the United States, a process which
requires knowledge of American civics, history, and basic English proficiency. In Ohio, 85% of immigrants who entered the
country before 1980 were naturalized citizens, exceeding national numbers.
Poverty
Naturalized citizens experienced a lower poverty rate than native-born citizens, who in turn experienced a considerably lower
poverty rate than non-citizens, indicating a progressive level of assimilation.
Refugees in Ohio
Ohio is a popular resettlement location for refugees. Since the beginning of FY 2000, it has accepted 17,473 refugees from 50
countries. The largest refugee community hails from Somalia, the second largest Somali population in the country, second only
to Minnesota. In recent years, the fastest growing refugee communities include the Nepali-Bhutanese and ethnic Karen and Chin
from Burma. Refugee communities in Ohio tend to concentrate in urban areas, principally Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati,
Akron, and Dayton. Though estimates vary, Columbus is estimated to be home to around 30,000 Somalis.
Conclusion
Despite having one of the slowest-growing foreign-born populations in the Midwest, Ohio has become a major regional hub for
refugees since 2000. Even as most immigrants are concentrated in major cities, many have begun to move into suburban and
rural communities. They represent an important increase in the state’s labor force, both in low- and high-skilled jobs.