Three empirical case studies will be undertaken in different sectors, involving different forms of migrant employment and entrepreneurship. Employee interviews, expert interviews and ethnography will be used as methods. A synthetizing (fourth) case study will build theory around migrants' labour networks and critical nodes, taking a critical perspective on general labour market theory.
Opening the discussion about labour networks and how migrants can access them to improve their position in a labour market has the potential to provide tools both for migrants and for those who institutionally mediate migrants’ work lives in Finland and beyond. Uncovering critical nodes revolving around a national labour market and the accompanying labour networks, this research will envision a new way of connecting unemployed people (and not only those with migrant background) to vacant jobs that better correspond to their qualifications. For policymakers and employers, this study will provide useful insights into the variety of labour supplying networks that are often hidden from them or are too complex to describe only with statistics.
Case Study 1 concerns migrants’ access to the labour market in the social and healthcare (S&H) and construction sectors. In Finland and the broader EU, these sectors exhibit labour market shortages. Moreover, these sectors need people with highly specific skills that may in some cases require renewed recognition of educational achievements and/or re-education. The ageing societies of Europe create a high demand for social and health care workers, who cannot be always found domestically. To a large extent, this sector is characterised by strict job regulation, representing a potential institutional barrier to migrant job entry. The worker shortage in the construction sector is also explained by the nature of the jobs that often require specific skills in heavy work. These skills have been scarce domestically and substituted by migrant workers on various non-standard employment contracts. In Finland, the construction sector employs a comparatively large proportion of migrant-background workers, whereas the S&H sector increasingly seeks job candidates with a migrant background. To gain a fuller understanding of the mechanisms behind migrants’ labour market entry, we conduct research in these two sectors.
Responsible researcher: Paul Jonker-Hoffrén,
Case Study 2 focuses on Ukrainians of working age who relocated to Finland because of the Russian-initiated war in their country. Most of them are subject to temporary protection by the Finnish government, which places them in a particular position in terms of labour networks and the associated critical nodes. The study investigates the difference between "online" work, in which people can perform all or most of their work duties remotely, and "on-site" work, which requires people to be present physically with other people or special equipment. The groups of people employed in occupations dominated by one or the other type of work face different risks that cannot be fully explained with traditional labour inequalities, especially in the case of forceful dicplacement. Moreover, this case study seeks to investigate the transitive character of labour networks and to identify major tendencies in transformations of labour networks. Thus, the first group has more opportunities to retain their previous job position, to maintain their labour networks, and to use them to facilitate following the chosen career path. The second group has no option to retain their job from before the relocation, and they need to have or to develop host-country oriented labour networks to support their working life in the new place of residence.
Responsible researcher: Mariia Prystupa,
Case Study 3 examines migrant entrepreneurship in female-dominated sectors such as beauty, care, food and catering, and cleaning services. Migrant-owned businesses have become an increasingly significant contributor to Finland’s GDP, with recent years showing a notable surge in enterprises established by migrants. Female migrant entrepreneurship is also on the rise. Despite their diverse backgrounds, many migrant entrepreneurs describe feeling “pushed” into self-employment, often viewing it as the only viable alternative to unemployment and the non-recognition of their skills. This study explores the entrepreneurial journeys of migrant women in comparison to salaried work, focusing on their pathways, choices, challenges, and the ways entrepreneurship shapes their livelihoods in Finland. It offers gendered insights into critical nodes and forms of agency within labour networks.
Responsible researcher: Jaanika Kingumets,
Case Study 4 is a synthesising study on the mechanisms lying behind the functioning of labour networks, identifying the critical nodes in which social agents meet together, leading to new employment opportunities. This case study will consist of a meta-level, theoretical analysis of the previous empirical case studies, and expert interviews. It will further elaborate what the critical nodes at the interface between migrants' labour networks and the host country labour market are about. What factors are involved in the event of recruitment or acceptance of a bid, that engender employment? What factors constitute the elements of a critical node: serendipity, potentiality, reputation, information? There already exists a lot of research on the constraints of migrants in the host country labour market, push and pull factors for migrant workers, and the role of various capitals, but there has been a lack of studies on the mechanisms of employment in the field of migration studies.
Responsible researcher: Markku Sippola,
The research team commits to the accepted practices in the research ethics in social sciences. In this section, you can find the documents regarding research ethics in the project. If you have questions about participation in the research as an informant, please contact responsible researcher for the relevant case study.