Essential? COVID-19 and highly educated Africans in Finland’s segmented labour market

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to characterise the position of highly educated African migrants in the Finnish labour market and to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on that position.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on the biographical work stories of 17 highly educated African migrant workers in four occupation areas in Finland: healthcare, cleaning, restaurant and transport. The sample was partly purposively and partly theoretically determined. The authors used content driven thematic analysis technique, combined with by the biographical narrative concept of turning points.FindingsUsing the case of highly educated African migrants in the Finnish labour market, the authors show how student migration policies reinforce a pattern of division of labour and occupations that allocate migrant workers to typical low skilled low status occupations in the secondary sector regardless of level of education, qualification and work experience. They also show how the unique labour and skill demands of the COVID-19 pandemic incidentally made these typical migrant occupations essential, resulting in increased employment and work security for this group of migrant workers.Research limitations/implicationsThis research and the authors’ findings are limited in scope owing to sample size and methodology. To improve applicability of findings, future studies could expand the scope of enquiry using e.g. quantitative surveys and include other stakeholders in the study group.Originality/valueThe paper adds to the knowledge on how migration policies contribute to labour market dualisation and occupational segmentation in Finland, illustrated by the case of highly educated African migrant workers.

Examining the Impact of Conscript Service on the Labour Market Integration of Migrants

“…a lack of language skills, networks and information, discrimination and the difficulty of getting previous skills and qualifications recognised (e.g. Kyhä, 2006;Kyhä, 2011;Larja et al, 2012;Paakkinen, 2016;Liebkind et al, 2016;Karayilan et al, 2017;OECD, 2018;Bontenbal & Lillie, 2019;Martelin et al, 2020;Ahmad, 2020a;Ndomo et al, 2022) were considered in the context of conscript service. The research findings indicate that conscript service could help both firstgeneration and second-generation migrants to overcome some of these barriers to labour market inclusion.…”

“…Especially third-country nationals (from outside Europe) tend to have a poorer position in the labour market and lower employment rates. Furthermore, third-country nationals are often employed in precarious, part-and short-term contracts as well as ethnicised occupations 1 (Heikkilä, 2005;Näre, 2013;Ahmad, 2015;Maury, 2020;Ndomo et al, 2022). Specific sectors, such as health care, transportation and cleaning, have a high concentration of migrant labour (Vartiainen et al, 2016).…”

“…For instance, despite the considerable number of hours dedicated to language learning in integration training, 28% of language course participants have been found to possess only beginner-level language skills or less (OECD, 2018, 28). Fluency in Finnish is a crucial requirement for most employers, and regrettably, language skills are sometimes utilised as a basis for discrimination, leading to the exclusion of migrants from employment opportunities (Ndomo et al, 2022).…”

“…In addition to a lack of language skills, a lack of country-specific knowledge about the labour market has also been identified as a significant barrier to the labour market integration of migrants (Bontenbal & Lillie, 2019). Particularly during the first years after arriving in Finland, some migrants are unaware of relevant Finnish national and local institutions, such as the employment office, which are crucial for effective job search and recruitment (Ndomo et al, 2022). Insufficient knowledge about the Finnish labour market, including collective agreements, 2 can also contribute to migrants being more susceptible to exploitation and discrimination.…”

Guest editorial: State policies and regulations towards migrant work in times of, and beyond, the COVID-19 pandemic

“…NGOs and civil society organizations also played an important role to fight for better State protection of migrants, through campaigns, lobby or judicial proceedings (Koinova et al , 2023). If not, migrants were left to fend for themselves, by switching jobs or taking up different work tasks, to avoid the detrimental effects of job loss, as Ndomo et al . (2023) illustrates through biographical interviews with highly educated African migrants in Finland.…”