Job search, labour networks, and rural-urban migration in Bangladesh

Much of the migration literature has focused on issues of who migrates and the impact of migration on the urban sector. The actual process of migration, by contrast, is largely underresearched. How are jobs acquired? What is the underlying job search process of migrants? How does the urban job search affect the process of migration and vice versa?; The aim of this study is to shed light on these questions by analysing the process of migration as observed in Bangladesh. In particular, the study seeks to explore the relationship between migration and urban job search. The building block for such an analysis is the flow of information available to the migrant. The Dhaka/Chittagong labour market survey, on which this study is based, suggests that much migration into these two metropolises does not precede the search for urban jobs, but is primarily undertaken only if a job has been secured. Instead of "blind hope" or some general knowledge of urban labour market conditions, only information of a confirmed job seems to induce the migrants to move. Such a scenario implies that the locus of urban job search may actually be in the rural area. More importantly, it suggests that migration and job search are undertaken through intricate labour market networks that link the urban and rural sectors.; This thesis investigates the micro foundations of these networks. What is the nature of the networks; why are they so dominant in the urban job search process; and what is their impact on the workings of the urban and rural labour markets. In doing so, the thesis rejects the dual labour market paradigm of migration and suggests that migration is not a cause of unemployment or low productivity in urban labour markets.