Young, Muslim and looking for a job in Australia

Immigration, whether formally organised, or through refugee arrivals, remains a major source of population and workforce growth for Australia. This article analyses the experiences of some young Muslim jobseekers in Australia. Some are recent migrants. Some are refugees. Others are second-generation migrant Muslim youth. The Australian Government has identified Muslim youth as needing some special assistance to obtain paid employment. The data considered below point to some of the obstacles faced by 18 young Muslim jobseekers in Western Sydney in 2009. Interviews were conducted with young Muslims of both sexes who were actively looking for work. It is concluded that the apparent ‘religious’ ostracism of young Muslim jobseekers results in a highly counterproductive form of ‘cultural unemployment’ that impedes the logic of the flow of migration. Yet despite repeated disappointments, the young Muslim jobseekers demonstrated considerable resilience and strategic thinking.