For over a century, assessments of labor migration have been rooted in classical political econom... more For over a century, assessments of labor migration have been rooted in classical political economy, which diagnose the individual relative advantages and motivations for moving to a new location for personal gain. These calculations by migrants are often referred to as push–pull factors, emphasizing superior survival conditions in destination regions. The recurring perspective is that those individuals who are most skilled will migrate to improve their standard of living. While the incentive to migrate ostensibly contributes to new working opportunities, training, and development, little consideration is given to those factors producing poverty in the regions of departure or the genuine potential for poverty in the destination regions (Todaro 1977). It is rooted in scientific abstraction rather than a historical and comparative examination of the factors that have propelled migration in different eras (Borjas 1989). By some means, in the ideal capitalist society, labor migration will almost always transpire on the basis of ensuring the creation of labor-market equilibrium. Keywords: employment and unemployment; labor; demography and population studies; labor supply; political economy; colonialism; capitalism
From 1990 to 2010, as contemporary globalization expanded tourism as well as international commer... more From 1990 to 2010, as contemporary globalization expanded tourism as well as international commerce and business, hospitality became one of the world's most rapidly growing industries. Hospitality workers are employed by resorts, hotels, spas, and restaurants, performing jobs from cleaning, cooking, and maintenance, to transportation, entertainment, tourism, and recreational services, as well as sex work, through guest-worker programs. Temporary and seasonal circular migration is integral to the global tourist industry, as hospitality conglomerates recruit laborers who will work for significantly lower wages in countries where workers have few if any options other than foreign employment to pay for basic needs such as housing, education, and health care, which are frequently unavailable in their home countries. Keywords: labor; labor supply; gender; women; poverty; political economy
The transition from underground to legal syringe exchange: the New York City experience
AIDS education and prevention : official publication of the International Society for AIDS Education, 1996
The most common method of syringe exchange program (SEP) development in the United States has bee... more The most common method of syringe exchange program (SEP) development in the United States has been for SEPs to be started by activists without funding and then to become a government-funded community-based organization. This developmental process, which has not been studied to date, involves major organizational change. We report our findings on three New York City syringe exchanges experiencing this type of transition. Our data illustrate that following legalization, increased legitimacy and funding allowed all three SEPs to expand the size and scope of their programs (e.g., adding hours, sites, referral services, and the ability to support user groups), resulting in a rapid growth in participation (over 15,000 in 18 months). Regulation accompanying legalization posed significant challenges to SEPs, including added record-keeping and reporting tasks, increased demand for referrals, and accommodating evaluation, which affected already overburdened staffs. The transition process pose...
For over a century, assessments of labor migration have been rooted in classical political econom... more For over a century, assessments of labor migration have been rooted in classical political economy, which diagnose the individual relative advantages and motivations for moving to a new location for personal gain. These calculations by migrants are often referred to as push–pull factors, emphasizing superior survival conditions in destination regions. The recurring perspective is that those individuals who are most skilled will migrate to improve their standard of living. While the incentive to migrate ostensibly contributes to new working opportunities, training, and development, little consideration is given to those factors producing poverty in the regions of departure or the genuine potential for poverty in the destination regions (Todaro 1977). It is rooted in scientific abstraction rather than a historical and comparative examination of the factors that have propelled migration in different eras (Borjas 1989). By some means, in the ideal capitalist society, labor migration will almost always transpire on the basis of ensuring the creation of labor-market equilibrium. Keywords: employment and unemployment; labor; demography and population studies; labor supply; political economy; colonialism; capitalism
From 1990 to 2010, as contemporary globalization expanded tourism as well as international commer... more From 1990 to 2010, as contemporary globalization expanded tourism as well as international commerce and business, hospitality became one of the world's most rapidly growing industries. Hospitality workers are employed by resorts, hotels, spas, and restaurants, performing jobs from cleaning, cooking, and maintenance, to transportation, entertainment, tourism, and recreational services, as well as sex work, through guest-worker programs. Temporary and seasonal circular migration is integral to the global tourist industry, as hospitality conglomerates recruit laborers who will work for significantly lower wages in countries where workers have few if any options other than foreign employment to pay for basic needs such as housing, education, and health care, which are frequently unavailable in their home countries. Keywords: labor; labor supply; gender; women; poverty; political economy
The transition from underground to legal syringe exchange: the New York City experience
AIDS education and prevention : official publication of the International Society for AIDS Education, 1996
The most common method of syringe exchange program (SEP) development in the United States has bee... more The most common method of syringe exchange program (SEP) development in the United States has been for SEPs to be started by activists without funding and then to become a government-funded community-based organization. This developmental process, which has not been studied to date, involves major organizational change. We report our findings on three New York City syringe exchanges experiencing this type of transition. Our data illustrate that following legalization, increased legitimacy and funding allowed all three SEPs to expand the size and scope of their programs (e.g., adding hours, sites, referral services, and the ability to support user groups), resulting in a rapid growth in participation (over 15,000 in 18 months). Regulation accompanying legalization posed significant challenges to SEPs, including added record-keeping and reporting tasks, increased demand for referrals, and accommodating evaluation, which affected already overburdened staffs. The transition process pose...
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Papers by Immanuel Ness