According to scientific research, discrimination based on origin in employment has increased in the last fifty years. As a result, especially Muslims have a lower chance of finding a job.
At the end of last month, a compilation of fifteen studies on discrimination in staffing showed that the problem escalated from 1976 to 2017. It is observed that discrimination against people of Muslim origin has increased mainly after 2000.
According to the researchers, policy is improving and more action is being taken against discrimination against job seekers on the basis of their ethnicity.
In response to the study, Van Gennip’s ministry says it cannot resolve discrimination against job seekers on the basis of their ethnicity alone. “These figures show once again that a long-term and intensive approach to discrimination in the labor market is needed.” “It’s also good that more and more employers are willing to cooperate in eliminating the problem”
In July, Minister Van Gennip presented to the House of Representatives a new action plan against discrimination in the labor market. This will last until 2025. An earlier action plan ran from 2018 to 2021.
The Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, in his presentation at the Parliament, emphasized that there is still a long way to go in order to eliminate the problem. He said that an ever-growing social movement against labor market discrimination has begun.
Despite being more educated, Muslims are not preferred
Dutch discrimination experts also describe the results of the meta-analysis as worrying. The Office for Social and Cultural Planning (SCP) concluded that immigrant youth, despite having a higher level of education and greater command of Dutch, faced more discrimination from their parents.
Lex Thijssen holds a PhD in ethnic discrimination in the labor market and is a sociologist at Radboud University. “The ball is too much in the hands of people with a migrant background,” he told NU.nl. “They’ve been insisted on integrating for decades. People with a migrant background are already doing this: They’ve made significant progress over the years, although they still have their downsides, according to the study.”
According to Thijssen, as a society, we don’t care enough about whether we are providing fair opportunities to people with a migrant background.
40% fewer responses to cover letter
In 2019, after researching thousands of fake applicants, the sociologist concluded that you should submit more application letters of Moroccan, Turkish or Surinamese origin before receiving a job interview invitation. People from a non-Western background received 40 percent fewer replies to their letters.
The authors of the meta-analysis compared results from studies in the United States, Germany, France, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in discrimination against job seekers of Muslim origin only in our country. France is the only country where there is a net decrease.