Employment growth in Greater Helsinki largely driven by foreign background residents
Over 20% of Greater Helsinki's residents have foreign backgrounds, yet their labor market position lags behind Finns. Despite this, recent employment growth is driven almost entirely by them, and in many occupational groups their work input is invaluable.
Immigrants and their children make up a large and growing part of the population of Espoo, Helsinki and Vantaa. At the end of 2022, there were 250,000 people with foreign background living in Greater Helsinki, four-fifths of whom had been born abroad. Those who moved to Finland accounted for nearly a quarter of the region's working-age population. The proportion of people with foreign background was highest in Vantaa at 25 per cent. In Espoo, 22 per cent of the population were of foreign background and in Helsinki 19 per cent.
The Helsinki City Executive Office has published results of a Study, using data from Espoo, Helsinki and Vantaa in 2022, on the integration of immigrants and the life situation of people with foreign background born in Finland. The study provides information on employment, income level and housing conditions. It is a continuation of earlier studies by the Helsinki City Executive Office on the same topic.
Many occupational groups are dependent on foreign background labor
The number of employed people with foreign background in Greater Helsinki has grown strongly. The growth in the number of employed persons in Greater Helsinki from 2000 to 2022 consists almost entirely of employed people with foreign background. In many occupational groups, the work input of those who have moved to Finland is invaluable. In the cleaning sector, the share is already two-thirds of those employed.
The employment situation of immigrants in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area is still worse on average than that of residents with Finnish background in the region. Labour force participation is lower, employment rates are lower and unemployment rates are higher. Many work in low-skilled positions and the situation for women is often worse than that for men.
Women's employment has developed positively
The lower income level of foreigners who have moved to Finland is reflected in their living conditions. Compared to the native population, fewer people live in owner-occupied dwellings and overcrowding is common, especially in families with children
"However, the picture has diversified. There have been positive developments, especially in groups that are difficult to employ and in women's employment. Nowadays, many people who have moved to Finland also work as specialists and experts. Many of them are working in health and social services and the information and communication sectors," says Senior Researcher Pasi Saukkonen from the City of Helsinki.
Among second generation immigrants, young women fare better than men
In terms of education, employment and income, young adults who are second generation immigrants – that is, people born in Finland whose parents were born elsewhere - do worse in life on average than their peers with a Finnish background. In both population groups, the situation of women appears to be better than that of men in terms of education and employment. In 2022, one in three Finnish-born men aged 20 to 29 with foreign background lacked a post-comprehensive school qualification.
People who moved to Finland are a heterogeneous group
The population with foreign background in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area is increasingly diverse. In addition to diverse background countries and language groups, the group includes people who have moved to Finland for very different reasons and who have different resources and expectations. It is therefore difficult to draw general conclusions. Before the latest economic downturn, however, the overall development was positive on several indicators.
Pasi Saukkonen: Ulkomaalaistaustaiset pääkaupunkiseudulla: asuminen, työllisyys ja tulot vuonna 2022 City of Helsinki, City Executive Office, City Information Services
Original article in Finnish
Translated by Green Sisu
