This report follows participants who completed the programme between 2020 and 2023. It describes their demographic characteristics and educational attainment, their attachment to the labour market and their income situation. The results are compared with those for immigrant women and women in the rest of the population aged 25–55.
Most participants had immigrated to Norway for family reasons. Approximately eight out of ten were family immigrants. Overall, the participants had a lower level of educational attainment than the comparison groups, and more than one in three had compulsory education as their highest completed level of education.
Many participants were employed in the years following completion of the programme. Among those who completed Jobbsjansen in 2020 and 2021, 70 and 72 per cent, respectively, were employed in 2024, including those who combined employment and education. Employment rates varied by factors such as country background, educational attainment and county of residence. However, there was no clear association between longer duration of residence and higher employment among former participants. In several counties, the employment rate among former participants was similar to or higher than that among immigrant women. However, it was lower than among women in the rest of the population in every county.
Among employed participants, the majority worked in sales and service occupations or as cleaners and helpers. Former participants were less frequently employed as managers or in professional and associate professional occupations than the comparison groups. Four out of ten employed participants worked full-time in 2024. The proportion working full-time was lower than among both immigrant women and women in the rest of the population.
Income developments largely reflected the participants’ increasing attachment to the labour market. Median employment income increased in the period leading up to and following completion of the programme in all cohorts. The proportion with employment income exceeding twice the National Insurance basic amount also increased, while the proportion with no employment income fell considerably. In 2024, the two earliest cohorts were close to the level among immigrant women when measured by the proportion whose employment income exceeded this threshold.
The participants’ own employment income also became more important to their household finances. Three years before completion of the programme, the participant’s employment income accounted for 6 per cent of total household income. The proportion increased to 17 per cent in the year of completion and to 29 per cent four years after completion. Median after-tax income per consumption unit also increased, but remained lower among former participants in 2024 than among women in the rest of the population. Income levels varied by household type and country background.
Overall, the report shows that many former participants developed a stronger attachment to the labour market in the period leading up to and following completion of the programme. More participants received income from employment, and their own employment income became increasingly important to their household finances. Nevertheless, both the proportion working full-time and income levels remained lower than among women in the rest of the population, and the results varied considerably between different groups of participants. The report describes developments among the participants, but cannot in itself determine the extent to which Jobbsjansen contributed to these developments.