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A Kurdish refugee living in Finland has spoken publicly about the challenges faced by migrants navigating the country’s labour market. In a column published on Saturady by Helsingin Sanomat, Aral Kakl described how discrimination, insecure work, and social exclusion push some immigrants into undeclared employment.
“Even if you do everything right, work hard and pay taxes, it’s not always enough. Especially if you’re a foreigner,” Kakl wrote.
Before arriving in Finland, Kakl worked as a journalist in Iraqi Kurdistan. After fleeing for safety and being sent to Finland under the EU asylum system, he retrained as a chef.
Since then, he has worked across the country under zero-hour contracts without a single permanent job offer. “I travel from lunch kitchen to lunch kitchen,” he said. “That’s the reality for a refugee in Finland.”
Kakl’s account was published alongside a report by Helsingin Sanomat, which documented how some immigrants in Finland engage in undeclared work to survive financially. While Kakl says he has never worked off the books, he said he understands those who do.
“There are many reasons behind the phenomenon—not just money, but power, fear, and survival,” he wrote. “Some act out of greed, but often it’s about being treated unequally.”
According to Kakl, the recent cutbacks to social support and job market exclusion leave many migrants in precarious situations. He criticised the stereotyping he experiences in the workplace, saying he is often seen only as a Middle Eastern man and is met with suspicion.
“When someone finally tells me a joke, I live off that moment for a week,” he said.
Despite repeated obstacles, Kakl said he refuses to take undeclared jobs offered by compatriots because he does not want to contribute to the growth of what he calls a “shadow society”.
“That kind of parallel community hears only its own voice and sees only its own people,” he said. “Its children play only with each other. I don’t want to be part of a system that pushes people into the shadows.”
He acknowledged the personal toll of trying to fit in and the pushback he receives both from anti-immigrant voices and from fellow immigrants who fear open discussion might damage the community’s image.
“Silence offers no protection,” Kakl wrote. “It only hides the truth.”
He added that even highly educated immigrants often find themselves marginalised. Despite holding a law degree and 17 years of experience in journalism and NGOs, he works today as a cook.
“I no longer believe I can break down the wall between the worlds of Finns and immigrants,” he wrote. “But maybe I can build a window.”
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Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
