Exploring Employment Trajectories of Low-Income Refugees: Qualitative Analysis

Background

Under the existing refugee resettlement policy, economic integration prioritizes immediate labor-market participation rather than long-term career development. As a result, refugees are often placed in low-wage, precarious jobs without prospects for the future. Although systemic challenges and employment outcomes for refugees are well documented in the existing literature, few studies have explored the ongoing, dynamic process of navigating employment challenges from refugees' perspectives. To better help refugee workers transition from their first “survival job” and advance their long-term career development, service providers and policymakers need more information. Thus, this study explored pathways to economic integration among low-income refugee workers enrolled in a workforce development program sponsored by a local government.

Methods

Qualitative interview data were collected from 28 low-income workers with refugee backgrounds who participated in a workforce development program that was designed to increase self-sufficiency by assisting public benefits recipients in advancing their careers. Phone interpretation, Language Line, was available for all interviews. Most interviews were conducted using interpretation, except for five participants who preferred to be interviewed in English. All recording files were transcribed and analyzed using ATLAS.ti. Three research team members collaboratively analyzed the data using grounded theory principles.

Results

Based on the findings, we have developed a conceptual model informed by the temporal economic integration model (Szkudlarek et al., 2024). Our findings identified four stages of employment over time. The “pre-arrival” stage covers work history in their home country or refugee camps. In the “first employment” stage, they take any available job during the initial 90 days of resettlement. The third stage, “current employment,” describes their current work situations, which were significantly affected by the previous stages. Finally, the “future employment” stage includes their dreams and aspirations along with the challenges they recognized in achieving them. The temporal economic model shows that while these stages are developmental, they do not occur in a fixed, chronological order. Instead, these stages are interconnected, where previous work history or its absence continually influences subsequent stages. Specifically, their human capital and experiences, or the lack of them during the pre-arrival stage, significantly impact their initial employment and continue to shape their future ambitions and their ability to achieve them.

Conclusions and Implications

The study findings showed that those enrolled in the workforce development program expressed strong hopes, dreams, and a desire to advance their careers and transition away from public benefits. They also indicated that economic integration for refugees is a long process. To support this process, we need policies and programs that recognize the impacts of refugees’ unique challenges related to family separation, lack of social capital, and other common issues faced by low-income workers, such as limited transportation resources. The settings of this study suggest that although federal level policies and programs may be most effective, local governments can play significant roles in the economic integration of refugees. Local governments' roles in economic integration become increasingly important as political contexts shift and federal support for refugees significantly diminishes.