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Young people are being hardest hit by job loss as a result of [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19, and will suffer the long-term labour market consequences of economic downturn. It is also anticipated that refugees and migrants will experience these effects disproportionately. The intersection of being both young, and from a migrant or refugee background, creates a double disadvantage in this labour market crisis. However long before this crisis hit, young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds faced persistent barriers - including racism and discrimination - when looking for work; barriers that contribute to long-term unemployment, underemployment or insecure employment.

During the March-April 2020 lockdown period, the Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY) interviewed 41 young people connected with our Employment Empowers program. We asked participants about the impact of COVID-19 on their employment journey. This report provides a snapshot of the immediate effect of COVID-19 on both employment and the search for employment for young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds in Victoria. Our findings correlate with broader analysis that the impact on young people has been swift and far-reaching; the majority of young people who were in some form of employment experienced either job loss or a reduction in hours during this period. Many also withdrew from the labour market. The authors argue that it is vital that those who experience disadvantage and exclusion in the job market are specifically targeted and supported to strengthen their connection to employment both now, and beyond. Whilst targeted support is critically important, we must also continue to understand and address the systemic barriers, such as racism, that serve to lock out certain groups from the job market, including young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds.

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