
Finding formal and stable employment in the local economy is a crucial step in the integration of refugees. In highly regulated high-income countries, multiple actors are involved in managing refugee employment and offer support to overcome its various barriers. Our research breaks new ground by focusing on the dynamics between these actors. We conducted 80 interviews with refugees, employers, governments, employer associations, refugee support organizations, and public employment services in three Western European countries. We conceive of the field as a refugee employment ecosystem in which complementarity is the key mechanism that aligns the various actors’ activities to achieve the goal of refugee employment. Complementarity means that actors not only fulfill their different roles but also step in, fill gaps, and add to others’ activities. Three microfoundations undergird this complementarity: individuals’ motives, responsiveness, and perseverance. By showing how refugee employment ecosystems are inhabited and sustained by individuals whose activities go beyond their assigned actor roles, we contribute to theory development in research on refugee employment and help to humanize theorizing about ecosystems at large. We also offer practical guidance on how to increase the resilience of refugee employment ecosystems.
SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth, SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth, SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
| selected citations These citations are derived from selected sources. This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | 17 | |
| popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network. | Top 10% | |
| influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | Average | |
| impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network. | Top 10% |
