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Figures published by Statistics Norway in 2001 show that labour market participation among 'non-western' immigrants in Norway is still low. However, recent survey data indicate that, contrary to common belief, union density among these immigrant workers is in some sectors as high as, and even higher than, that of indigenous workers.
Recent figures from the Statistics Norway (Statistisk Sentralbyrå, SSB) show that labour market participation among 'non-western' immigrants (ie those from outside Europe and North America) in Norway is still low, and there are indications to suggest that this is very much due to a general reluctance among employers to recruit people from such groups.
There is also a common perception that non-western immigrant workers have a much lower trade union density rate than indigenous workers in Norway. This belief has been sustained by a variety of cultural and social explanations, and often cited as an indication of the degree of integration among immigrants in Norwegian society. However, recent survey data indicate that, contrary to common belief, union density among non-western immigrant workers in Norway is in some sectors as high as, and even higher than, that of indigenous workers. However, although the union density rate is high in those areas where trade unions are traditionally strong, the general picture is still one of non-western immigrant employees being members of unions to a lesser extent than their indigenous and 'western' counterparts.
Figures from SSB show that immigrants constituted 5.1% of the total Norwegian population in 1996, and that half of these were people from the 'non-western' part of the world. More recent figures from 2000 show that the employment rate among non-western immigrants varies from the 42% to 54%, although there are significant variations depending on the time spent living in Norway. These figures compare with the overall figure of approximately 60% for the population at large. Likewise, the unemployment rate among non-western immigrants was significantly higher than among indigenous workers in 2000, ranging from 8% for immigrants of South American origin to approximately 14% for those of African origin, which may be contrasted with the 3.4% rate for the whole population.
A large proportion of immigrants in Norway live and work in the capital, Oslo. Recent figures from the Labour Market Administration, (Aetat) show that although non-western immigrants make up only 9.3% of the population of Oslo, they constitute 36.2% of all unemployed persons there. Furthermore, the figures show that 70% of participants in labour market measures in Oslo are of non-western origin, and one of the principal explanations for this trend is a general reluctance among employers to recruit people from such groups.
Not only is the situation of non-western immigrants in the Norwegian labour market characterised by lower employment activity, but their employment activity is also confined very much to particular sectors of the labour market, such as cleaning and renovation, hotels and restaurants, and the transport sector. These are areas characterised by low education and few requirements with regards to formal qualifications. Furthermore, another characteristic of the immigrant situation is that they are more often than indigenous workers subject to more vulnerable employment conditions. For instance, 1997 figures from SSB show that a much larger than average share of immigrants are subject to temporary employment - 20% compared with 8.6% for the population at large.
The traditional view with regard to trade union density among immigrant employees in Norway has been that they are to a much lesser extent organised in trade unions than indigenous employees. This common conception is to a certain degree challenged in a recent survey report published by the FAFO Institute of Applied Social Sciences on behalf of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisasjonen i Norge, LO), which reveals that union density among non-western immigrant workers in Norway is in some sectors as high as, and even higher than, among indigenous workers (Trade unionism among non-western immigrants, Elin Svensen, background report for the 2001 LO annual congress).
Although it is difficult to determine the overall union density rate among immigrants in Norway on the basis of the figures presented by SSB and in the FAFO survey report, both sources nevertheless seem to suggest that immigrant density is approximately 15-20 percentage points lower than among indigenous workers. Trade union density by gender among non-western immigrant employees in Norway is 40% for men and 30% for women, as opposed to 55% and 60% for the population in general (SSB figures for 1997). However, what is significant is that the union density rate is higher among non-western immigrants in areas where union density is traditionally high and where trade unions are strong - ie manufacturing industry. The overall density rate in this area is estimated to be 54%, while the equivalent figure for non-western immigrant employees is 58%.
In the FAFO report, the figures have been broken down for three sectors; private sector manufacturing; private sector services; and the public sector. In private manufacturing, as mentioned above, union density among non-western immigrants is 57%, compared with 50% in the sector's general working population. In this area, many immigrant employees work in larger manufacturing concerns, where union density is traditionally high.
In private services, density among immigrants is much lower at 23%, compared with 37% in the sector's general population. Again it is possible to identify structural features that may serve to explain this fact. In private services, trade unions have been struggling for years to recruit new members, and the density rate has remained low in those areas where there is a high proportion of non-western immigrants, including the hotel and restaurant sector.
The most significant differences in union density are found in the public sector, where only 44% of non-western immigrant employees are unionised, while the figure for whole population is 80%. This may be explained by the fact that most non-western immigrant workers in the state sector are temporary employees, and located in low-status and low-paid jobs, such as cleaning, which traditionally have a low union density. Another explanation for these differences may be that public sector employment serves as labour market training for many immigrants when they first enter Norwegian working life.
The report also looks at the hypothesis that the type of employment relationship will affect unionisation. In Norway, union density is generally low among employees subject to irregular hours, casual employees and employees in temporary employment. The report finds that the same may be argued in relation to non-western immigrant workers. With regard to education levels, there are similarities between immigrants and indigenous employees, because union density increases steadily according to the level of education achieved. Finally, immigrant employees are not a heterogeneous group and similar surveys from other European countries show that there are significant variations among ethnic groups on the question of unionisation. The FAFO report also shows that union density varies in this regard from 28% to 52%, depending on country of origin.
The immigration debate in Norwegian working life has centred around the extent to which immigrants have been successfully integrated into the labour market, and whether the trade union movement is doing enough to accommodate and to meet the needs of immigrant employees. The recent FAFO survey report contributes - at least to a certain degree - to undermining the myth of a very low trade union density rate among non-western immigrant workers, and it clearly demonstrates that the level of density is not so much a result of inadequate trade union activity as of more fundamental structural features in the Norwegian labour market. An important factor in this regard is the fact that many non-western immigrant employees in Norway work in sectors, such as private services, where union density has been traditionally low. If union density is taken as the sole indicator of integration, unions are in fact not doing a bad job in accommodating new immigrant workers. However, the issue of integration is much more complex and involve a much wider set of variables than just union density.
Much of the criticism in this area directed at trade unions in Norway has not just been focused on their apparent failure to unionise immigrant employees, but also on what are seen as their unsuccessful efforts sufficiently to accommodate such employees within their ranks, with immigrants very much remaining passive union members. In a recent doctoral thesis, Jon Rogstad argues that trade unions are far too uniform and traditional in their activities in order adequately to accommodate the special needs and interests of immigrant employees - the focus is very much on traditional concerns such as wages and working conditions (Mellom Faktiske og forestilte forskjeller, Jon Rogstad ISF 17/2000). These are obviously matters of concern for immigrant employees as well, but they also face other and more pressing problems, both inside and outside working life. In his thesis Mr Rogstad identifies the more fundamental problem of a lack of workplace and colleague respect for immigrants' background, culture and religion as an important factor in this regard. These, as well as others, are beyond doubt viable reservations, and are also shared by many trade unionists. There are, for instance, few employee representatives with non-western backgrounds in Norwegian companies, a factor which serves to undermine communication and understanding between non-western employees and their trade unions.
The Centre for Combating Ethnic Discrimination (Senter mot etnisk diskriminering, SMED) is a body whose main purpose is to document the incidence of discrimination, propose measures to tackle discrimination and provide free legal assistance for immigrants subject to discrimination. In its status report on discrimination and protection, SMED argues that there is a significant gap between the affirmative policy statements and measures initiated by the main union organisations at the central level, and the actual assistance afforded individual immigrant employees by company-level union representatives. This may be remedied, according to SMED, by unions recruiting increasing numbers of people from ethnic minorities within their own ranks as both members and company-level union officers. SMED is also critical of the employment and working conditions to which many immigrant employees are subject when they enter working life.
Finally, although immigrants in employment to some degree enjoy the benefits of belonging to a trade union organisation, there are other important aspects of integration that need to be tackled in the years to come. There is still the problem of a relatively low labour market participation rate among large groups of non-western immigrants in Norway, at least when compared with indigenous employees and immigrants from the western hemisphere. Similarly, the income level is significantly lower among these groups, and statistics also go a long way to sustain the argument that a much larger share of immigrants, compared with the general population, are social benefit recipients. (Håvard Lismoen, FAFO Institute of Applied Social Sciences)