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New York City has always been a gateway to opportunity for people from around the world. Successive waves of immigration created a melting pot of cultures that left its mark on the City's history and its neighborhoods. Immigrant workers helped build the City and its infrastructure, filled many of the jobs that kept it running, and created businesses that grew into major corporations. Today, immigrants account for 43 per cent of the City's workforce and occupy a wide range of positions. Since the 1970s, immigration has helped fuel the rebound in the City's economy. Increases in the immigrant population have more than offset declines in the native-born population, pushing the City's total population to record levels. New arrivals have helped revitalize neighborhoods across the City. Neighborhoods such as Chinatown, Flushing, Washington Heights, Coney Island, Elmhurst, and Corona all display a vitality fueled by their immigrant residents, many of whom are creating businesses and jobs as they seek to meet their communities' needs. As their incomes have risen, many immigrants have become home owners, further strengthening their ties to the City. Immigrants have been a major factor in New York City's recent economic growth. Between 2000 and 2008, the number of immigrant workers in the City grew by 68 per cent, their wages increased by nearly 39 per cent, and their contribution to the gross city product rose by 61 per cent. These increases all exceed comparable figures for the City's native-born workforce. New York City's future economic growth will remain intertwined with immigration. At the same time, immigration presents new challenges to the City as it seeks to deliver services equitably and to foster cooperation and understanding between cultural groups striving for economic progress.

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