Presentation on labour discrimination in European labour markets, presented at the ECCAR (European Coalition of Cities agains Racism) conference in Nuremberg on 17 October 2014

1. Racial discrimination in European
labour markets
ECCAR conference, Nürnberg
17 October 2014
Gregor Walz, RADAR Rotterdam

2. Context: unemployment
in Europe
Unemployment
rates (2013)

3. Context: unemployment
in Europe
Change in
unemployment rates
(-/+, 2008-2013)

4. Unemployment gap
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
born in reporting country
foreign born
BE BG CZ DK DE EE IE EL ES FR HR IT CY LV LT LU HU MT NL AT PL PT RO SI SK FI SE UK

5. ‘Real’ discrimination?
• Difference between disadvantaged position and
discrimination
• Two main aspects:
– Discrimination at access to labour market
– Discrimination in the workplace
• Lack of comparable and reliable data, only:
– Perceived discrimination
– Country-specific research

6. Perceived labour market
discrimination
• Eurobarometer (2012):Perception of ethnic origin/skin colour as a disadvantage
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
BE BG CZ DK DE EE IE EL ES FR HR IT CY LV LT LU HU MT NL AT PL PT RO SI SK FI SE UK

7. National-level
research: access
• Field experiments, including correspondence tests:
– NL: 70% of employment agencies go along with
discriminatory request
– UK: people with minority/foreign sounding name are a
third less likely to be shortlisted for job interview
– FR: applicants from poorer suburbs are discriminated
based on their address
– CZ: majority sounding name is 75% more likely to be
invited to an interview than Roma sounding name
– DE: young applicants with Turkish background have to
send 7 applications instead of 5 to be invited to interview

8. National level research:
workplace
• Salaries and prospects
– HU: Roma paid under minimum wage
– PO: wages of native Poles higher than non-Polish nationals,
for comparable jobs
– BG: few people prepared to have migrant manager
• Working conditions
– NL/GE/IE: Eastern European migrant workers in
agricultural work
• Harassment, abuse, lack of accommodation of needs
– A lot of incidental examples and complaints in different
countries (e.g. AU, NL, PO, ES), little structural research

9. Examples of remedies
• Main focus on promoting diversity:
– ES: ACCEDER programme in Spain
– BE: Brussels Diversity Charter
– AU: work@migration
– IE: South Dublin County Council and Travellers
– UK: London Tower Hamlets employability
interventions for Bangladeshi an Somali women
– Etc.

10. Rotterdam
• Taking two-sided approach: promoting diversity,
preventing discrimination
• Remedy: complaints
– Basic complaints provisions
– Targeted smartphone app for reporting discrimination
• Prevention: diversity
– Plans to set up network/platform: business, education
institutions, trade unions