Immigrants in Denmark: Access to Employment, Class Attainment and Earnings in a High‐Skilled Economy

Abstract

AbstractThis study examines employment access, class attainment, and earnings among native‐born and first‐generation immigrants in Denmark using Danish administrative data from 2002. Results suggest large gaps in employment access between native‐born Danes and immigrants, as well as among immigrant groups by country of origin and time of arrival. Non‐Western immigrants and those arriving after 1984 are at a particular disadvantage compared to other immigrants, a finding not explained by education differences. Immigrants are more likely to be employed in unskilled manual jobs and less likely to be employed in professional and intermediate‐level positions than native‐born Danes, although the likelihood of obtaining higher‐level positions increases as immigrants’ time in Denmark lengthens. Class attainment and accumulated work experience explain a significant portion of native‐immigrant gaps in earnings, but work experience reduces native‐immigrant gaps in class attainment for lower‐level positions only. The Danish “flexicurity” model and its implications for immigrants living in Denmark are discussed.