Nationality Discrimination in Job Advertisements: Evidence from the United Arab Emirates

• In Event: 398 - Visual Media Poster Session

Abstract

How does explicit bias operate in the labor market in the United Arab Emirates? We propose that explicit bias takes two forms in job advertisements: direct explicit nationality bias – stating specific desired nationalities for applicants – and indirect explicit nationality bias – indirectly indicating preferences of aggregated nationalities for job applicants, particularly in the dichotomy of immigrants and nationals. We analyze 200 randomly collected job advertisements from the online classifieds section of a major English newspaper in the UAE. In the legal context of an absence of anti-employment discrimination laws, we find that direct explicit nationality bias is more prevalent than indirect explicit nationality bias, occurring in 30.5% and 13.5% of the sample respectively. Additionally, we find that job advertisements for positions associated with a higher socioeconomic index score are less likely to include any type of explicit nationality bias. The results reveal the presence of discrimination in one dimension of the labor market, the job advertising process, and indicate the need for further research into labor markets in the region.

Author

• Andrea Sequeira, University of Washington