There is a difference of almost 20 percentage points compared to those born in the country of residence. Conversely, regarding European immigrants, this gap with the native-born is very narrow.

Especially the unemployment rate of women from outise Europe seems problematic. In 2010, only 37 % of women originating from outside Europe were working: that is 20 percentage points below the figure for men of the same origin or for women born in Belgium. Family responsibilities, precarious job prospects, and the social model are some of the factors which may explain this imbalance.

The effect of being "foreignborn" has a significantly negative impact on the probability of getting a job. Nonetheless, certain parameters such as the place where a person's diplomas were obtained, fluency in the language of the country of residence, and social networks are not included in the analysis, whereas they could also be explanatory factors here. Apart from individual characteristics, discrimination in recruitment cannot be disregarded as was shown by an ILO study and the employment diversity barometer produced by the Centre for Equal Opportunities.

The full press release of the national bank of Belgium can be consulted here.

The full article on this topic (De Keyser, Delhez, Zimmer) can also be downloaded here in French and in Dutch.