This inform summarises the results of the EMN Synthesis Report on Labour Market Integration of Third-Country Nationals in EU Member States.
The effective integration of migrants into the host society is a key challenge Europe is currently facing. Labour market integration is a key element of successful migrant integration. While unemployment rates have been decreasing steadily since 2014, the gap between the unemployment rates of third-country nationals and that of native- and EU-born remains.
Key points to note:
- Effective labour market policies and measures are important tools for Member States to address increasing migration flows and persistent employment gaps between migrant and national populations.
- Most Member States have dedicated labour market integration policies in place, targeting multiple migrant groups, including newly arrived, first generation third-country nationals who were the focus of this study.
- The driving forces behind current labour market integration policies tend to be labour shortages and the need to help newcomers into employment quickly so they become self-sufficient.
- Member States combine mainstream and tailored labour market integration measures.
- The most common obstacles encountered by Member States in supporting third-country nationals relate to the accreditation of job qualifications/assessment of skills of those arriving from outside the EU, tackling discrimination within recruitment processes and managing varying levels of language skills in integration measures.
- Public sector integration measures focus primarily on the phase prior to accessing employment, including preparing for and finding a job.
- Private sector measures aim more specifically at integrating (migrant) workers into the workplace.
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