Obesity and labor market outcomes among legal immigrants to the United States from developing countries

This paper studies the association between weight and labor market outcomes among legal immigrants to the United States from developing countries using the first nationally representative survey of such individuals. We find that being overweight or obese is associated with a lower probability of employment among women who have been in the U.S. less than five years, but we find no such correlation among men who have been in the U.S. less than five years, or among women or men who have been in the U.S. longer than five years. We generally find no significant association between weight and either wages, sector of employment, or work limitations for either women or men. Possible explanations for these findings are discussed.