A report released by the Immigration Policy Center provides a clearer portrait of what the feminine face of immigration looks like in the United States. The report reveals not just where immigrant women come from and what they do when they arrive in the U.S., but also the disparities that exist between immigrant women and women born in the United States. According to the report:

As of 2004, the proportion of the adult foreign-born population comprised of women was largest among Germans (65 percent), Filipinos (59 percent), and South Koreans (56 percent) and lowest among Mexicans (44 percent), Salvadorans (46 percent), and Indians (47 percent).

In FY 2004, 31.6 percent of all employed, adult women who legally immigrated to the United States worked in “professional and technical fields,” followed by “service” (19.9 percent) and “operators,fabricators, and laborers” (13 percent).

Foreign-born women earn lower wages than native-born women. Among the recipients of employment-based visas, women are far more likely than men to be
“dependent” visa holders (the spouses or children of workers receiving visas) as opposed to “principal” visa holders (the workers themselves).

You can access the entire report here (PDF file).