Publications / Reports / 2012 / 2012:001 Diskrimineringens omfang og årsaker
Diskrimineringens omfang og årsaker
ISBN print: 978-82-7763-377-0
ISBN internet: 978-82-7763-378-7
Pages: 185
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Do job seekers with foreign names meet greater obstacles in their access to employment compared to equally qualified applicants with Norwegian names?
This report is based on an extensive data material: First, we have conducted a field experiment where 1800 fictitious job applications only differing in that the applicants have a foreign and a typical Norwegian name, were sent to real job vacancies. Second, we conducted 42 qualitative in-depth interviews with employers whose employment practices were made subject of observation in the experiment. In sum, the research design represents a methodological innovation in research on labour market discrimination in a Norwegian context.
The results from the field experiment document that discrimination in hiring constitutes a substantial obstacle for access to employment for people with ethnic minority background: The probability to receive a call-back for applicants with foreign sounding names is reduced by about 25 percent compared to equally qualified applicants with a Norwegian name.
The interviews show, however, that these results cannot be explained by one factor alone. Rather, discrimination is explained by a combination of employers' varying familiarity with ethnic minorities, past experiences, ethnic stereotypes and the uncertainty many employers feel when confronted with applicants with foreign sounding names.