Migrant women are missed potential for the Finnish labour market
Migrant women arriving from third countries struggle with finding employment in Finland. The Finnish labour market includes various discriminatory structures, and even a high level of education does not necessarily guarantee success for migrant women when it comes to accessing working life. This also affects the integration of the next generation. This information is reflected in the recent reports by the European Migration Network (EMN).
Low employment rates delay the integration of migrant women. According to Eurostat labour statistics, the employment rate of third-country migrant women living in Finland was only 41 per cent in 2020, whereas the employment rate of Finnish women was 72 per cent. The employment rate of migrants improves as the duration of their residence in the country increases. However, the development of the employment rate is particularly slow for migrant women. The desire to access the Finnish labour market applies to both highly qualified migrant women and those with lower levels of education.
The low employment rate and slow employment development among migrant women are attributable to, for example, the reasons for their immigration, cultural factors and the gendered labour market. The employment rate of migrant women is considerably lower than that of migrant men.
However, according to the latest Labour Force Surveys, the gap between the employment rates of migrant women and women born in Finland is decreasing. Dissolving the obstacles of migrant women’s employment is particularly important now that a large, completely new group of migrant women have entered Finland from Ukraine. Promoting their employment is crucial to keep up the positive trend in the employment rate of migrant women in Finland.
Today, on 25 November 2022, the European Migration Network (EMN) is organising a national conference Diversity of migrant women – How to improve labour market integration of migrant women? The EU-level report on the integration of migrant women, published by the EMN in September, will be presented in the event. The national contribution of Finland on the same topic will also be published in the event. The event will feature both international and Finnish integration experts who will speak about best practices in integration policy.
The conference can be attended live or via a remote connection through this link: https://event.prospectumlive.com/emn-finland-national-conference-2022/lobby
Discriminatory structures in the labour market
Family is the most common reason for immigration among third-country migrant women in Finland. For many women who migrate to Finland for family reasons, the obligations related to starting a family and caring for children coincide with the first years of the integration process. That is why they do not immediately head for the labour market.
The report of EMN Finland states that establishing early contact with the labour market would be important but is not supported by the current integration model. The Act on the Promotion of Immigrant Integration is currently being reformed, and one of the targets of development is to make integration training more labour market-oriented, even for people who are not planning to access the labour market at that moment.
Some of the obstacles of migrant women’s employment include strict language requirements in the most common fields employing women: social welfare and healthcare industry, customer service and education. Employment is also hindered by employer attitudes.
“Employment is a significant factor in successful integration and it has wide-ranging impacts on individual well-being. The low employment rate of migrant women will also have an impact on the next generation. The weak labour market position of mothers with a migrant background has a negative impact on the school performance and integration of their children,” says Senior Specialist Jutta Saastamoinen from the European Migration Network.
Potential for the labour market
Weak employment also means wasted competence; according to the EMN report, a considerable share of migrant women have a higher education degree, yet their employment rate is low. On average, migrant women also have more diverse language skills than Finns. Thirty-three per cent of migrant women reported speaking more than three languages fluently. According to Statistics Finland, only one in four people born in Finland can speak three languages.
“Making better use of their language skills in Finnish working life would benefit migrant women, their families and Finnish society alike”, says Saastamoinen.
The employment of women would have significant social impact. The need for workforce in Finland is a frequent topic in public discussion. However, there is already a large group in Finland whose potential should be tapped into for the benefit of the labour market. To help qualified international workers settle in Finland, it is important to integrate the entire family in Finnish society. Enabling the spouses, the majority of whom are women, to be included in working life plays a considerable role in the equation.
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