We examine the growth of real value added, labour input and labour productivity of immigrant-owned firms in Finland in 2007–2016. In our analysis we use the so-called FLOWN (Finnish Longitudinal OWNer-Employer-Employee) data by Statistics Finland that allows linking register information on firms, their owners and employees.
As immigrant-owned firms account for a few percent of all firms and about one percent of all labour in the business sector, their contribution to the growth of output and employment must be limited. However, the growth rate of their real value added is markedly stronger than in other firm groups. Their job creation rates are exceptionally high but their job destruction rates are, however, about the same magnitude as in the indigenous-owned firms. The immigrant-owned firms have created a relatively large amount of low productivity and low wage jobs. On an average, their wage growth has been somewhat higher than in other firms, but pro-cyclical variation of wages has been stronger.
