Refugee women and work: Evidence from an Australian longitudinal study

Obtaining employment is a high priority for people with refugee backgrounds in countries of resettlement and an important aspect of integration. There are a range of barriers to gaining work for new arrivals; however, much of the existing quantitative evidence on characteristics of employment and facilitators and barriers to work faced by refugees does not consider gender or focuses primarily on men. We used a large, longitudinal survey of over 2000 refugees to Australia to identify characteristics of employment for refugee women and factors associated with the likelihood of employment. Refugee women had lower rates of employment compared with pre-migration and were concentrated in lower-skilled occupations. There were gender differences in predictors of employment outcomes and English language proficiency, living outside major cities and self-assessed health were all significant determinants of employment for refugee women. The findings highlight the need for specifically considering the employment trajectories of refugee women and the importance of a gender-informed employment strategy for new arrivals.