Elevating Excellence: Do Skilled Workers Drive Superior Bilateral Labor Agreements?

Low-skilled migrant workers, often face severe workplace conditions and are vulnerable to exploitation. Bilateral Labor Agreements (BLAs) between host and source states protect these workers by outlining human and labor rights. These agreements also impose political and financial burdens on host states, and so host states have to carefully consider who they are inviting, and what costs they are willing to bear to invite what type of workers. This paper argues that host states view skilled workers as more valuable than low-skilled workers and thus sign better BLAs for inviting skilled workers. The central hypothesis is that BLAs for skilled workers are more favorable than those for low-skilled workers. Using the Chilton Dataset, regression analyses reveal that skill level significantly influences BLA quality, with agreements for skilled workers being 11.12% more comprehensive. Imputed data show a 5.09% increase in BLA scores for skilled workers. Further analysis indicates skill level significantly affects governance and development provisions within BLAs.