Beschäftigung Geflüchteter in deutschen Betrieben: Einfache Tätigkeiten überwiegen

Abstract

"The labour market integration of refugees has seldom been studied from the employers’ perspective. To address this gap, this research report utilizes data from the IAB Establishment Panel to examine which establishments employ refugees, focusing on a comparison of two distinct phases of refugee migration to Germany. Specifically, it examines the years 2017–2018, following the onset of the Syrian civil war, and 2022–2025, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Beyond changes over time, the report also examines the distribution of refugees across industries, sectors, establishment sizes, and regions. The IAB Establishment Panel enables a representative analysis of the employer side – a perspective that has remained underrepresented in previous research. A key finding is that despite substantial differences in demographic composition between the two cohorts, the establishments employing them are surprisingly similar. While refugees from 2015 were predominantly young men with lower levels of formal education, women are overrepresented among Ukrainian refugees, who also possess higher formal qualifications. Nevertheless, the distribution across industries of both groups remains remarkably alike. Potential explanations include shared language barriers and the lack of recognition for foreign qualifications, both of which hinder access to jobs commensurate with their skill levels. In both migration phases, refugee employment is concentrated in a few industries with low formal entry requirements. Temporary agency work (16 to 26 percent) and accommodation and food services (14 to 18 percent) are particularly overrepresented, despite these industries accounting for only 10 to 12 percent of total employment in Germany. In contrast, refugees are underrepresented in industries with demanding language and qualification requirements, such as healthcare, public administration, and business services. Notably, this underrepresentation persists for Ukrainian refugees in the female-dominated social sector, despite high labour demand and the high proportion of women in this cohort. Regarding establishment size, refugees from both cohorts are more likely to find work in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) than in large establishments, even though the latter represent a larger share of overall employment." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Cite article

Hohendanner, C. & Zimmermann, F. (2026): Beschäftigung Geflüchteter in deutschen Betrieben: Einfache Tätigkeiten überwiegen. (IAB-Forschungsbericht 07/2026), Nürnberg, 17 p. DOI:10.48720/IAB.FB.2607