Russian immigrants with higher education must often lower their employment standards

(Helsinki 07.05.2004 - Trade Union News from Finland) A recently published new study by researcher Arja Haapakorpi focuses on the employment prospects of young university educated Russian and Estonian immigrants in Finland. According to the study, the labour market status of Estonian immigrants is higher than that of Russian immigrants. The careers of graduate Russian immigrants comprise temporary work, unemployment and labour market training, while Estonian immigrants have better prospects of professional career advancement, even though their employment is not always permanent.

The labour market orientation of Russian and Estonian immigrants is to some extent similar to the mainstream in Finland, but tends to take shape in relation to their special status as immigrants. Immigrant opportunities are limited compared to those of the host population. Russian immigrants in particular assume that their prospects of securing professional positions are poor, and this forces them to lower their employment standards and to focus on sectors with a labour shortage.

You can read the summary of the study in English on Trade Union News from Finland.