The unemployment rate among immigrants in Norway is considerably higher than in the general population. It is believed that immigrants may benefit from an approach where they can quickly be out on regular jobs, a so-called “place-then-train approach”. There is no systematic summarized knowledge on how such labor market programmes works for immigrants.
In this systematic review, we summarize the effectiveness of wage subsidies, direct employment programmes and special employment programmes, on employment for immigrants. We found no randomized controlled trials satisfying our inclusion criteria. The findings are based on results from six Nordic registry-based retrospective controlled cohort studies.
Main findings
Wage subsidies possibly increase the probability of employment compared to no programme for unemployed immigrants.
Direct employment programmes possibly increase the probability of employment compared to no programme for unemployed immigrants.
Special employment programmes do not seem to increase employment compared to no program for unemployed immigrants.
The evidence is based on non-randomized observational studies. The quality of the effect estimates is low or very low. Therefore, we have limited confidence in the reported effect estimates. This does not mean that these programmes do not work, but that the evidence is insufficient to make firm conclusions about the effect.
Keywords: immigrants; supported employment; work; employment; unemployment.
Copyright ©2015 by The Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH).