Abstract

Objectives and background: The increasing involvement of migrant care workers in professional long-term care services has fostered a debate on their patterns of integration in the area respectively in daily care work. Available research indicates distinctive patterns in Western countries, which is mainly explained by country-specific long-term care-, employment- and migration policies. In the focus of this paper is an analysis of the patterns of integration of migrant care workers in professional long-term care services in Germany. Based on the asssumption that the emerging patterns are influenced by migration status and skill levels, it systematically compares the situation of care workers with and without migrant backgrounds on different skill levels. Thus, it examines the significance of two dimensions of social inequalities – migration status and skill levels as an indicator of socio-economic class - and their interaction. Furthermore, it analyses the impact of selected social policies - long-term care- migration- and the often neglected professionalization policies on the development of the patterns of integration in the area and in daily care work. Conceptually, the empirical analysis is embedded in an own multi-level intersectional approach. This conceptual framework draws on approaches created in the research area “intersectionality” for the analysis of the intersection of dimension of inequalities – socio-economic class and migration status – as well as the interaction of social policies on the macro-level and developments within care organizations on the meso/micro-levels.

Methods and data source: Empirically, the analysis is based on a representative, comprehensive survey study with approx. 650 care workers in home- and residential care provision throughout Germany directed by the author. The data analysis use different types of statistical procedures (SPSS).

Results and conclusion: The findings show a complex interrelationship between migration status and skill levels – as independent and interrelated dimensions - with regard to the employment situation, the allocation of care workers to home care respectively residential care services and in daily care work in care organizations. The patterns are emerging embedded in an interaction of the selected social policies in particular professionalization policies and practices on the organizational level. The paper confirms the relevance of an interrelated analysis of both migration status and skill levels to understand the patterns of integration of migrant care workers in professional long-term care services. Furthermore, it shows the significance of the neglected area of professionalization policies and the impact and limits of the selected social policies on developments in care organizations.