Discrimination: the evidence

To ensure an evidence-based understanding and analysis, ILO has conducted national practice testing research in a number of countries across Europe. These studies have measured the incidence of discrimination in access to employment and documented its characteristics. ILO has also analyzed the role and importance of legislation and of training in preventing discrimination.

ILO has carried out research since the mid-1990s on discrimination against migrant workers in Western Europe and North America. Discrimination testing programmes conducted in countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, the US, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy showed significant levels of discrimination in access to employment, on the mere basis of appearance or name. Practice testing studies in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain showed net discrimination rates of up to 37%. They demonstrated that, generally, discrimination intervenes most markedly at the first stage of the recruitment procedure (phone call). The study in Italy in 2004 showed a total discrimination rate of 41% (i.e. 27% at the first phone call stage, 12% at the invitation to interview, and 2% at the offer of work stage). A similar study - (pdf 1845 Kb) carried out in Switzerland following a similar methodology found rates of discrimination higher than in other European countries studied. The ILO conducted in 2005-2006 similar testing in France and Sweden, reports will be posted when published in November 2006.
Published studies are available here

Practice testing studies

• Labour market discrimination against migrant workers in Italy - (pdf 1110 Kb) • Italian (pdf 1100 Kb)
  E. Allasino, E. Reyneri, A. Venturini, G. Zincone, 2004
• Discrimination in access to employment on grounds of foreign origin: the case of Belgium - (pdf 480 Kb) • French (pdf 527 Kb)
  P. Arrijn, S. Feld, A. Nayer, Geneva, ILO, 1998
• Discrimination against racial/ethnic minorities in access to employment in the United States: Empirical findings from situation testing - (pdf 218 Kb)
  J. Bendick, Jr., Geneva, ILO 1996
• Labour market discrimination against migrant workers in Spain - (pdf 254 Kb) • Spanish (pdf 425 Kb)
  Colectivo IOE: M. A. de Prada, W. Actis, C. Pereda and R. Pérez Molina, Geneva, ILO, 1996
• Labour market discrimination against foreign workers in Germany - (pdf 408 Kb) • German (pdf 299 Kb)
  A. Goldberg, D. Mourinho, U. Kulke, Geneva, ILO, 1996
• Discrimination against migrant workers and ethnic minorities in access to employment in the Netherlands - (pdf 240 Kb)
  F. Bovenkerk, Geneva, ILO, 1995
• Discrimination practice testing studies: France and Sweden
  Coming in December 2006