Employers are more likely to choose an ethnic Dutch worker over someone with a minority background because they believe they are the safest choice and less likely to cause problems, the government’s socio-cultural planning office SCP says in a new report.

By giving a job to a native Dutch person, ‘they think they are less likely to be confronted with unexpected problems such as language difficulties and long holidays,’ the SCP says in its latest Discrimination Monitor, published on Tuesday.
In addition, employers sometimes exclude ethnic minority staff because they could dominate the workforce or cause divisions between other groups, the report says.

Research
The research is based on over 100 interviews with employers, staffing agencies and jobless organisations as well as an assessment of discrimination complaints.
Earlier research has shown non-western immigrants in the Netherlands are more likely to be unemployed than the native Dutch and are less likely to have a permanent job, even if they have the same education, qualifications and experience.
People of Turkish and Surinamese origin are viewed more positively than those from the Antillean islands or Morocco, the researchers say, adding that media coverage of the latter groups has played a role in this.
Interviews
Non-western job applicants are also more likely to sell themselves short at interviews. Language problems, modesty and a reluctance to sell themselves also affects their chances of being offered a job.
And distinctive dress, such as wearing a headscarf or having a beard, can also play a role, particularly in jobs where client contact is important, the report states.
Anti discrimination bureaus deal with an average of 405 complaints about work-related discrimination on the grounds of ethnicity or religion a year.