Occupation, Gender and Internal Migration -Sweden 1998-2008

Maria Brandén, Stockholm University
Sara Ström, Stockholm University

In this study, we address the structural approach on couples’ internal migration in a new innovative way: by examining whether couples respond similarly to men’s and women’s potential monetary benefits from migration by using Swedish register data for the period 1998-2007. The results indicate that for a move to affect the income positively the move must almost inevitably be to an urban region. This is the case regardless of gender. However, it is also common for a move to affect income negatively, in particular if the move is to large regional centers or smaller regions. It is common for both men and women to gain from internal migration. Out of the 40 occupations, men gain from a move to an urban region when working in 11 occupations, whereas women gain in 12 occupations. There are however gender differences in what occupations men and women gain from moving in.