This scoping literature review examines the labour market integration of migrants’ descendants across Nordic welfare state contexts. Despite the region’s comprehensive welfare infrastructure and documented patterns of intergenerational socioeconomic mobility, substantial structural disadvantages persist in this population’s attainment of economic parity with peers of native parentage. Drawing upon multidisciplinary scholarship published since 2010, this review synthesises empirical evidence concerning employment outcomes, human capital utilisation and the institutional and social mechanisms underlying persistent labour market inequalities.
The synthesis identifies a pattern of incomplete integration: while migrants’ descendants demonstrate measurable intergenerational advancement, they continue to experience disproportionately high unemployment rates and mismatches between credentials and occupations (overqualification). Persistent ethnic discrimination in hiring processes is a key constraint, extensively documented through field experiments showing that bias operates on the basis of perceived ethnic origin – signalled through names – independent of objective human capital indicators.
Furthermore, while descendants exhibit higher levels of educational attainment – potentially reflecting a compensatory strategic response to anticipated discrimination – these credentials fail to translate into proportionate employment returns, resulting in underutilisation of acquired skills and competencies. The literature indicates earnings differentials may derive partly from occupational sorting and labour market segregation into lower-remuneration sectors, alongside potential wage discrimination. Additionally, outcomes vary considerably by parental country or region of origin, indicating labour market stratification patterns.
