2. Methodology

The first analytical phase of this study is a literature review examining the role of employers in facilitating the labour market integration of immigrants.  During this phase, desk research was also conducted to explore the various types of wage subsidies available for employers in each Nordic country and the possibilities they offer for a better integration of immigrant workers. The second phase, which draws on semi-structured interviews with public and private employers from the five Nordic countries, sheds light on concrete experiences and presents insights from employers dedicated to hiring immigrants. This employer perspective is further enriched by interviews with intermediary organisations that play a pivotal role in matching employers with immigrant candidates in the Nordic countries.

The literature review primarily centres on employers’ experiences in hiring immigrants. Both peer-reviewed articles and grey literature (including surveys, questionnaires and reports) have been consulted using Google Scholar, Scopus and Google. The literature search utilised various keywords associated with the five Nordic countries, including their translations into the respective Nordic languages. Keywords included terms such as ‘diversity management’ and ‘employers’ role/practices/experiences in hiring refugees and migrants. To streamline the selection process, the authors predominantly focused on studies that were conducted or available in the Nordic countries. In order to enhance the depth of the review, a few international sources were consulted, including the OECD, as well as relevant non-Nordic literature on diversity management.

The empirical material was collected from eight Nordic employers that offer jobs in elementary occupations (Table 1). The cases were selected based on recommendations from employer organisations, including the Confederation of Danish Industry (DI), the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprises (NHO), the Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK) and the Icelandic Confederation of Business (SA). Additionally, the Public Employment Services of Sweden and Finland, as well as the Nordic Expert Group on Labour Market Integration of Refugees and Migrants were asked to suggest employers who are committed to hiring migrants for entry-level positions. In the selection of cases, the researchers sought diverse representation in terms of ownership, sectors, size and geographical location. Semi-structured qualitative interviews with employers were conducted via Teams, lasting between 30 minutes and one hour. The empirical material was collected between August and October 2023. A list of interview questions can be found in Appendix 1.  

Additionally, interviews with intermediary organisations – including staffing agencies, associations for immigrant integration and NGOs across the Nordic countries – provided deeper insights into employers’ experiences with hiring immigrants, including hurdles and potential solutions for integrating immigrants into the Nordic labour market. A list of interviewees can be found in Appendix 2. 

Table 1. Employers interviewed in this study.

The classification of the companies’ size is based on the number of employees. Small: 10–49 employees; medium-sized: 50–249; large: 250 or more (Eurostat classification of enterprise size).

With regard to the literature review, it should first be acknowledged that, due to the relatively limited research on employers’ experiences and perspectives in the Nordic countries (we found approximately 20 relevant peer-reviewed articles), the majority of sources used in this study are reports and grey literature. In addition, as noted by Ravn and Bredgaard (2021), surveys of employer attitudes often show overly positive attitudes towards the recruitment of job-seekers with a migrant background. These surveys can be influenced by social desirability bias, and may not accurately reflect the employer’s genuine preferences and intentions. Among the examined peer-reviewed articles, interviews emerge as predominant research methods, while the number of field experiments and vignette is few. By observing the genuine actions of employers, e.g. via response rates for job interview invitations, field experiments aim to mitigate the social desirability bias that can influence surveys. Vignette experiments, on the other hand, attempt to counteract bias by assessing employers’ intentions (Ravn & Bredgaard, 2021). Given the methodological constraints, the findings in this literature review come with certain limitations. Readers are encouraged to keep these constraints in mind when interpreting the results of the review.

With regard to the empirical material, it should be acknowledged that while interviews are informative and insightful, their limited number means that they provide only a snapshot of valuable perspectives, rather than a comprehensive overview of Nordic employers’ perspectives on and experiences of hiring immigrants. Moreover, gaining insights into the study themes from interviews with HR managers and directors should be viewed with caution. The reason for this is that statements regarding, e.g. motivations are often informed by how the organisations wish to present themselves externally. Engaging with staff at varying organisational levels might provide a more comprehensive understanding of the situation, as well as the perceived challenges (Bjerck et al., 2018). However, due to time constraints, this approach was outside the scope of this study.