According to the government statistics agency, in 2016, this share amounted to only four percent.
"One and a half years after they had obtained their residence permit in 2014, an average 4 percent of asylum seekers between the ages of 18-64 were in employment. One year later, the share had increased to 11 percent," CBS said.
According to CBS, almost three-quarters of these asylum status holders are from Syria (10,000) and Eritrea (4,000). The employment rate among Syrian refugees is 10.5 percent, while only six percent of Eritreans are employed. The biggest employment rate is observed among Afghans (29.7 percent).
One and a half years after receiving a residence permit in 2014, an average 4% of #asylumseekers aged 18 to 64 were in employment. How much one year later? https://t.co/SjIBojBHxn pic.twitter.com/2eUxxxbFov
— CBS.nl Statistics (@statisticscbs) April 17, 2018
The institution also said that, in 2017, 36 percent of these status holders were working in the hospitality industry, while another 24 percent were mostly working in temporary jobs and the trade sector.
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Statistics Netherlands added that only four percent of those who had obtained an asylum residence permit in 2015 had been employed.
The European Union has been experiencing a severe migration crisis in recent years due to the influx of thousands of people fleeing violence in their home countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2017, the Netherlands received 16,145 first asylum requests. The total number of asylum seekers and following family members entering the country in 2017 stood at 30,635, over half of them represented by Syrians and Eritreans.
