Immigrants, unemployment, and Europe's varying welfare regimes

doi:10.1017/CBO9780511493577.007

7 - Immigrants, unemployment, and Europe's varying welfare regimes

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 June 2009

Ann Morissens

Edited by

Craig A. Parsons and

Timothy M. Smeeding

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Ann Morissens: Affiliation:
PhD candidate, Department of Social Sciences Roskilde University, Denmark
Craig A. Parsons: Affiliation:
University of Oregon
Timothy M. Smeeding: Affiliation:
Syracuse University, New York

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Summary

Introduction

Both immigration and immigrants have been high on the political agenda in many European countries for a few decades. In recent years the tone of these debates has become harsher and more negative towards immigrants, and we have observed a tightening of policies related to immigration and immigrants. Arguably, the main policy consequence of these actions has been a decrease in social rights for immigrants and asylum seekers, while refugees' social rights have remained strong in most rich nations. Prior to this period, immigration scholars (Soysal 1994; Guiraudon 2000) had observed an expansion of immigrants' social rights.

The focus of this chapter is on outcomes for immigrants in six countries that are characterized by different welfare settings: Canada, Germany, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The inclusion of Canada and the United States in the analysis offers some broader comparative perspective on European experiences. The central theme of this chapter is the relation between welfare states and outcomes for immigrants in the socio-economic domain, with a focus on poverty and labor market participation. In the chapter, I compare outcomes for immigrants with outcomes for the non-immigrant population, and attempt to estimate the distance between the two groups. Large differences between the two groups can be considered an indicator of failing integration in the socio-economic domain (see also chapter 15 here).

The second part of the chapter addresses the consequences of weak labor market attachment and examines the relationship between unemployment and poverty.

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Type: Chapter
Information: Immigration and the Transformation of Europe , pp. 172 - 199

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511493577.007 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2006

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