Jobcentres and mental health of refugees

Almost 500,000 refugees who arrived in Germany during the last decade are employed. The labour market integration of refugees is a lengthy process, but it has noticeable employment effects on a labour market that is characterised by a shortage of skilled workers in many sectors and regions. At the same time, there are a number of obstacles to the labour market integration of refugees. Language barriers and bureaucratic difficulties, but also the lack of recognition of educational qualifications from the country of origin are particularly worth mentioning.

In recent years, there has been a steady increase in incapacity benefits due to mental illness among the work force in Germany. The topic of mental health/illness is increasingly becoming the focus of science and the public. There are now also numerous indications that the situation in the country of origin, adverse circumstances during the flight, as well as the reception conditions in the Federal Republic of Germany lead to an increased risk of mental illness among refugees.

As soon as refugees gain a permission to work, they fall into the regime of regular basic income support, which is administrated by local jobcentres. Jobcentres are tasked to support benefit recipients in their participation in education and the labour market. This project asks how the mental health of refugees is assessed and dealt with in job centres.

For this purpose, we conduct case studies in a total of eight job centres nationwide. For each location, four specialists and managers as well as a representative of a medical assessment centre (e.g. the medical service of the local employment agency) are interviewed. In addition, we will speak with volunteers from the local civil society and external experts. The case studies are part of a larger project. The research project is carried out jointly by the Institute for Labour Market and Employment Research (IAB) and the Institute for Work and Qualification (IAQ).