06/23/2026
๐ African immigrants who speak English well are twice as likely to be employed in the U.S., according to an upcoming paper by Drs. Lydia Okabe (African and African Diaspora Studies at UT Austin) and Hyacinth Udah (Social Work and Human Services, James Cook University, Queensland, Australia)
Key findings include:
๐ฃ Strong English proficiency improves employment outcomes regardless of other factors.
๐ Higher educational attainment, U.S. citizenship status, and longer residence in the U.S. are also associated with better employment opportunities.
๐ Immigrants from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Republic of Congo reported both the lowest English proficiency and lowest employment rates among the countries examined.
๐ Researchers emphasize the need for more targeted language and socioeconomic integration programs for African immigrant communities.
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