Economic outcomes of female immigrant entrepreneurship

Abstract

The contribution of female immigrant entrepreneurs is not acknowledged in debates about the economic impact of Australian immigration. Often, the controversial immigration debate evolves around questions such as: What contributions do immigrants make? Do immigrants take jobs from non-immigrants? Do immigrants create jobs? Do immigrants have higher unemployment rates than non-immigrants? Unfortunately, such debates attract anti-immigration views such as: immigrants are highly welfare-dependent and are welfare cheats; immigrants avoid paying taxes; immigrants employ their own kind; immigrants operate in the black economy; immigrants commit crimes; and many other negative expressions that add to the paranoia against immigrants and immigration policies. This paper engages in the immigration debate by examining the economic contributions of a group of Asian-born women entrepreneurs in Sydney. This empirical study shows that they make significant economic contributions to the creation of new businesses and jobs in addition to other non-quantifiable economic benefits to Australia.