As the 21st century is maturing, large-scale immigration and ethnic stratification constitute key drivers of societal change in the advanced, liberal democracies of Europe and North America. Incorporation of immigrant-origin populations as full-fledged and productive members of mainstream society is high on the public agenda. Despite a vast literature on labor market inequalities between immigrants and natives, relatively few prior studies use data where employees are linked directly to their employers to study these issues. Thus, our knowledge about the role of firms and workplace contexts in the processes promoting or hindering immigrant economic integration is still limited. Yet, workplaces arguably constitute key local settings where economic rewards are allocated, social status is negotiated, and a substantial share of social interaction between adults unfolds.

The aim of this Young CAS Fellow project is to bring together an international team of early-career social scientists in a collaborative effort to conduct the first ever cross-national comparative study of within-job pay inequalities between immigrant-origin and native workers (i.e., comparing pay gaps among employees who hold the same occupational title and work for the same employer).