The OECD series Making Integration Work summarises, in a non-technical way, the main issues surrounding the integration of immigrants and their children into their host countries. Each book presents concrete policy lessons for its theme, along with supporting examples of good practices and comparisons of the migrant integration policy frameworks in different OECD countries. This sixth volume presents a set of considerations for policy makers in designing introduction measures for newly-arrived immigrants and includes a mapping of national practices.
The OECD series Making Integration Work summarises, in a non-technical way, the main issues surrounding the integration of immigrants and their children into their host countries. This sixth volume presents a set of considerations for policy makers in designing introduction measures for newly-arrived immigrants and includes a mapping of national practices.
This thesis is about newly arrived adult migrants’ meaning making and learning in Swedish society during the two years’ introduction period, after they have received the residence permit. I have specifically studied Arabic speaking adults’ meaning making and learning, by carrying out observations and individual in-depth interviews with 12 migrants. The introduction period consists mainly of three so called introduction measures; the civic orientation course, Swedish for immigrants (SFI), and different work related activities, such as internship at different work places. The results show that etablering is about shaping the newly arrived adult migrants into ”good” citizens, through the introduction measures, among other things in the civic orientation course, which is regulated through the policy documents, and which so to say provides meaning to the newly arrived. The “good” citizen has some specific characteristics, which, roughly, are that he or she is independent (and advocates individuality), free, equality thinking, secularized, law-abiding (which includes being honest), responsible, and a “good” parent. These characteristics are expressed in different ways in the civic orientation course, for instance through the course material. The Swedish society is described as something desirable, and different from what is implied to be ”Arabic” values and ways of thinking. The idea of the “good” citizen appears to aim at constructing the adult migrants’ (and their families’) identity, something which many of the study’s respondents make a resistance to. As concerns the migrant’s new experiences, it is, for example, those which the migrant get through the contact with the Swedish Public Employment Service (SPES) that affect the meaning making in the new society. The meaning which most of the respondents have made of the SPES’s measures for them is that this authority only offers “prepackaged” solutions, and does not provide the help or support that they need. Also the experiences which the migrant has in the civic orientation course, and the meaning which ”old” migrants give to him or her, play a role when he or she makes meaning of Sweden and Swedes, and of his or her new life situation. Further, it has been shown that it is those experiences that the adult individual has been socialized through, and those which he or she has gained through work or education in his or her country of origin, which affect his or her meaning making in Sweden. It is mostly values which concern child upbringing and religion that lead to a certain understanding and construction of one’s new life. These values, when related to the values which are included in the ”good” citizen idea, also lead to either a resistance or a readiness towards the meaning giving that is embedded in the ”good” citizen notion. Denna studie handlar om nyanlända vuxna migranters meningsskapande och lärande i det svenska samhället under deras tvååriga introduktionsperiod, efter att de har fått uppehållstillstånd. Jag har specifikt studerat arabisktalande vuxnas meningsskapande och lärande, genom observationer och enskilda djupintervjuer med 12 nyanlända. Introduktionsperioden består främst av tre s.k. etableringsinsatser; kursen i samhällsorientering, svenska för invandrare (SFI) samt olika arbetsrelaterade och arbetsfrämjande insatser, såsom praktik på olika arbetsplatser. Resultatet visar att etablering handlar om att forma de vuxna nyanlända till ”goda” medborgare, genom etableringsinsatserna, bl.a. i samhällsorienteringskursen, som regleras genom policydokumenten, och som s.a.s. tillhandahåller mening för de nyanlända. Den ”goda” medborgaren har vissa specifika kännetecken, vilka, i grova drag, är att han eller hon är självständig (och förespråkar individualitet), fri, jämlikhetstänkande, sekulariserad, laglydig (vilket inkluderar ärlig), ansvarsfull, och en ”god” förälder. Dessa karaktärsdrag kommer på olika sätt till uttryck i samhällsorienteringskursen, exempelvis genom kursmaterialet. Det svenska samhället framställs då också som något eftersträvansvärt, och skilt från det som antyds vara ”arabiska” värderingar och tänkesätt. Föreställningen om den ”goda” medborgaren verka syfta till att konstruera den vuxna nyanländas (och dennas familjs) identitet, något som många av studiens respondenter gör motstånd mot. Vad gäller migrantens nya erfarenheter, är det exempelvis de som migranten har fått genom kontakt med Arbetsförmedlingen som påverkar meningsskapandet i det nya samhället. Den mening som de flesta av respondenterna har gjort om Arbetsförmedlingens insatser för dem är att denna myndighet enbart erbjuder dem ”förpaketerade” lösningar, och inte tillhandahåller den hjälp eller det stöd som de behöver. Även erfarenheter som migranten gör i samhällsorienteringskursen, samt den mening som ”gamla” migranter förmedlar till honom eller henne, spelar roll för hur vederbörande skapar mening om Sverige och svenskar, och om sin nya livssituation. Dessutom har det visat sig att det är de erfarenheter som den vuxna har blivit socialiserad genom, samt de som han eller hon har fått genom utbildning eller arbete i ursprungslandet, som påverkar migrantens meningsskapande i Sverige. Det är främst värderingar som är knutna till barnuppfostran och religion som leder till en viss förståelse och konstruktion av ens nya liv. Dessa värderingar leder också, när de stöts mot de värderingar som ingår i föreställningen om den ”goda” medborgaren, antingen till ett motstånd mot eller en beredvillighet inför det meningsgivande som ingår i den ”goda” medborgaren.
This book aims to answer a number of important questions. To what extent have European countries converged or diverged with EU-wide economic and social indicators over the past 20 years? What have been the drivers of convergence? Why do some countries lag behind, while others experience continuous upward convergence? Why are these trajectories not always linear? Particular attention is paid to the role of institutions, actors and industrial relations – focusing on the resources and strategies of governments, employers and trade unions – in nudging EU countries onto an upward convergence path.
Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden face similar problems of integrating large groups of immigrants, especially low-educated ones from outside the EU, into their labour markets. In this volume, researchers from across the Nordic Region analyse how labour market integration of immigrants can be promoted. Education policy, active labour market policy, social benefit policy and wage policy are analysed. A key conclusion is that no single policy is likely to suffice. Instead, various policies have to be combined. The exact policy mix must depend on evaluations of the trade-offs with other policy objectives.
This book sheds light on one of the most controversial issues of the decade. It identifies the economic gains and losses from immigration--for the nation, states, and local areas--and provides a foundation for public discussion and policymaking. Three key questions are explored: What is the influence of immigration on the overall economy, especially national and regional labor markets? What are the overall effects of immigration on federal, state, and local government budgets? What effects will immigration have on the future size and makeup of the nation's population over the next 50 years? The New Americans examines what immigrants gain by coming to the United States and what they contribute to the country, the skills of immigrants and those of native-born Americans, the experiences of immigrant women and other groups, and much more. It offers examples of how to measure the impact of immigration on government revenues and expenditures--estimating one year's fiscal impact in California, New Jersey, and the United States and projecting the long-run fiscal effects on government revenues and expenditures. Also included is background information on immigration policies and practices and data on where immigrants come from, what they do in America, and how they will change the nation's social fabric in the decades to come.
This publication analyses recent development in migration movements and policies in OECD countries and some non member countries. This edition's special chapters cover renewing ageing workforce skills and Asia in international migration.
Relative to its population, Iceland experienced the largest inflow of immigrants over the past decade of any OECD country. Four out of five immigrants in Iceland have come from EU and EFTA countries, although there has been a recent increase in humanitarian arrivals. Employment rates are the highest in the OECD, for both men and women, reflecting the recent and labour market oriented nature of most immigration to Iceland. However, immigrants’ skills are often not well used, as witnessed by the high rate of formal overqualification. What is more, immigrants’ language skills are poor in international comparison and there is evidence of growing settlement of immigrants. Against this backdrop, Iceland is at a turning point in its integration framework, and seeks to develop a comprehensive integration policy for the first time. This review, the fifth in the series Working Together for Integration, provides an in depth analysis of the Icelandic integration system, highlighting its strengths, weaknesses, and potential areas for improvement. Earlier reviews in this series looked at integration in Sweden (2016), Finland (2018), Norway (2022) and Flanders (2023).
Flanders experienced large inflows of immigrants over the past decade, coming from an increasingly diverse range of countries, with growth rates outpacing the Netherlands, France and Germany, as well as Belgium as a whole. While integration outcomes have improved in recent years, some of the core indicators remain unfavourable in international comparison, especially for non-EU immigrant women, refugees, and youth with migrant parents.
