On Line Dialogue

1st Theme for discussion: Migration and the current financial crisis

The current economic and financial crisis is probably yet to reach its highest peak, however a stagnation of economic activity and rising unemployment have been felt by several countries in EUrope and North America. The overall negative climate clearly affects both migrants and natives. The media have been reporting dire competition for jobs between native and migrant workers (the title of a news story in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera published in the Sunday, 22nd March edition was eloquent: Italian want the migrants' jobs back) as well as between legal and irregular workers especially in sectors like construction, which have experienced the crisis in more acute ways. It might be logical to assume that the negative economic climate would lead to a reduction of migration inflows towards developed economies as well as a growth in return migration flows. The assumption is that some immigrants will be motivated to return to their home countries while less immigrants will be inclined to move given the negative prospects as regards employment and wages.

 

However, the situation is more complex and more fluid than that: first because the crisis affects in different ways different categories of immigrants and their families, and second because job prospects and wages are probably worsening in source countries too keeping thus the comparative profit from migration similar to the pre-crisis period. It may seem logical to assume (as also Papademetriou and his team argue, see http://www.migrationpolicy.org/transatlantic/pubs.php) that long term settled migrants and their families will be affected by the crisis in ways similar to those of natives. They are not subject to losing their papers if they lose their jobs and they are unlikely to move because of the crisis.

 

Similarly immigrants who have been waiting for years to obtain their papers to migrate regularly to large immigration countries such as the USA or Canada, are unlikely to change their plans because of the economic crisis because they have been waiting for too long to waste the opportunity. Migrants who are undocumented though and mid-term migrants, notably those who have been staying in the destination country 5 years or less and/or whose legal status is insecure or who have left their families behind are more likely to consider going back.

 

However, the decision to return is further affected by two factors: on one hand, the pressure from their families back home to keep sending remittances and, on the other hand, the job prospects in the source country upon return. If the former are high and the latter are low, these immigrants are more likely to stay in the destination countries and accept worse working conditions, lower wages, even periods of unemployment. Those who may lose their papers because of lack of employment may also consider staying and going underground, working in the informal market if there are few prospects of economic survival when they go back and especially if propsects of then returning to the destination country are bleak because of migration restrictions in developed economies.

 

The above are some of the concerns and questions that have made us start the GFMD-Civil Society Days online dialogue with the following question:

 

The current financial and economic crisis is thought to affect in important and unexpected ways migrant labour by lowering demand in all sectors and suppressing wages. The question arises whether migrants are affected by the crisis in a different way than native workers? And if yes, which type of migrants (long term, or recent migrants, lesser skilled or high skilled, those migrating alone or those accompanied by their families) are affected more significantly? What types of policies need to be put in place to mitigate these effects? Would welfare/unemployment policies me most useful or policies encouraging return? What could be other options?

 

To contribute your thoughts and comments on this theme and participate in the online dialogue, please register with the CSD/GFMD Athens 2009 website. To register, click here.

 

 

 


Comments

  • The consequences of this crisis are concerning everyone. Increasingly.

    For the case of Europe at least, I think its effects will effect both immigrant and native workers, in different ways certainly, but equally harshly. The crisis is causing disillusionment and resentment in both native and immigrant workers. With less jobs on offer for migrants these are being deprived of the chance to get a job that will permit them to send money back home. At the same time, EU citizens who had moved on to other employment opportunities and who saw their living conditions improve, their quality of life and the prospects for upward socio-economic mobility improve, they are now having to consider – or in many cases they are already - taking steps backwards.

    With unemployment in some sectors growing, native workers are beginning to consider jobs that they had either moved away from, or that they were not interested to do before. In short, they were not willing to do the jobs that migrants were able to fill in over the past decade. So, as natives are becoming unemployed and are starting to look around for jobs, they are bound to be frustrated when they will see migrants – especially temporary migrants – working while they are on the dole. This will fuel resentment and anti-immigration feelings that we are already witnessing in many European countries. What is happening in Andalusia in Spain is just a typical example of exactly this. In recent years, Huelva has become one of the largest producers of strawberries and has attracted temporary, seasonal foreign workers mainly from Morocco and Romania. This was working very well until recently as the native Spaniards who used to work in the agricultural sector had moved away from farming jobs. Now, unemployment in other sectors is growing and the region’s economy is slowing down. So Spaniards, unemployed and economically insecure, are looking around for other jobs, with lower pay, and with less or no prospects for professional development. This will certainly affect the government’s hiring quota for next year’s foreign workers. In the meantime, its already affecting the local situation. Since February, a number of protests against migrant workers have been organised and local tension has been growing among locals and migrants. Even worse, for the migrants who are already in the region - they are not only having to compete one another for fewer jobs, in many cases they are already working for less, or even unable to find work, and this is affecting what money they can send home to their families who are relying on them. And to top it off, they are now on the receiving end of growing resentment against them.

    So, as the ‘cows get leaner’ the disillusionments and the insecurity and the steps backwards will be growing all around – regardless of whether the workers are native or migrants.



    by Eva - 04/04/2009 13:52:45





  • The prospect of the crisis spreading to the real economy is indeed daunting.

    It is beyond doubt that all sectors and economic activities will be affected one way or another, albeit in a non-symmetric fashion. Some people think that the prevalence of the “black” or “gray” or “undeclared economy” will act as a shield, while others remain skeptical.

    While worrying, though, it might be an idea to try and figure out ways of dealing with earlier problems that become even more pressing during the crisis. For instance, the Greek labour market was “dualist” in nature even before the crisis, consisting of two distinct parts: a protected segment of insiders and a vulnerable segment of outsiders. Migrants belong to the latter category overwhelmingly (together with the young and many women). If this dichotomy was unfair and problematic during the growth phase, it is untenable in the face of the recession.

    If during the upswing the domestic society could afford to turn a blind eye to instances of precarious and vulnerable work, this can no longer be countenanced. Common rules and a simple regulatory framework for work should be applied to all.


    Posted by Barbie50



    by admin - 07/04/2009 23:49:30

  • Countries that built successful economies in part on the backs of cheap migrant workers, mostly semi and less skilled now face upheaval in their labor markets due to economic downturn. Countries like Taiwan, Malaysia, South Korea, and the Gulf states, companies are folding, factories are closing, and thousands are losing their jobs — meaning migrant workers are being shoved out of the labor pool and into a tenuous half-life on the margins of the world economy. On March 15, the Malaysian government revoked 60,000 work visas it had granted other Bangladeshis, and officials are now threatening to round up foreigners for deportation. It has introduced a new policy of “Foreign Workers First out” in order to protect local workers viewed with hostility by native Malaysians competing for the same increasingly scarce jobs. It aims to cancel visas for up to 60% of the 2.1 million foreign migrants in the country when their contracts end, sending them back to Bangladesh and Vietnam among others. According to World Bank, some 53 million people may fall below the poverty line if the financial crisis continues and remittances dip.
    There are virtually no safety nets for migrants caught in this mire, nor international regulatory regimes to oversee their recruitment and fair compensation. The cash-strapped governments of countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and the Philippines are struggling to come up with solutions for their expatriate workers. In such a situation, governments need to thrash out a regional system to deal with migrant grievances and to help stranded, indebted workers. But such sentiment is likely to fall on deaf ears in host countries, where unskilled foreign laborers not long ago were welcomed as useful contributors to economic development. It is unfortunate if the migrant workers are the scapegoats just because of the economy has turned sour.
    I believe the GFMD would be a right place to put the issues on table for establishing better regional cooperation among the countries of origin and destination.

    Shakirul Islam
    OKUP, Bangladesh



    by Shakirul Islam - 16/04/2009 07:48:25

  • The current financial and economic crisis is thought to affect in important and unexpected ways migrant labour by lowering demand in all sectors and suppressing wages. The question arises whether migrants are affected by the crisis in a different way than native workers? And if yes, which type of migrants (long term, or recent migrants, lesser skilled or high skilled, those migrating alone or those accompanied by their families) are affected more significantly? What types of policies need to be put in place to mitigate these effects? Would welfare/unemployment policies me most useful or policies encouraging return? What could be other options?
    First Theme for discussion is " Migration and the current financial crisis". Yes Now all of the world is in financial crisis. So why we seppereted native and migrants. In the 1st theme the first queistion is: whether migrants are affected by the crisis in a different way than native workers?
    The answer regarding this queistion I like to say why we define native and migrants. When a country for his own purpose use the migrants works & they become richer & richest, so why they can not take this for all (Native & Migrants). I think in this situation Receiving country should not try to find out skilled & unskilled, Ligal & undocumanted migrants for biger interest. The receiving country any way got the service from all type of migrants. So they (receiving countries Gov.) should try to find out how all can servive in this critical situation.This will be man kind & thus it is protect Human Rights of Migrants.
    There have raise another quistion that is:Would welfare/unemployment policies me most useful or policies encouraging return?
    Answer of this quistion will be we have need to soliderity to all type of migrants.We can make a strong UN Body who searching the working market. It is true that this time the world is in financial crisis. But in other hand there have a lot of countries if they receive the migrants only to cultivate their lands world finance become sronger. The Australia, Greenland (The part of Newziland, Canada who have a lot of cultivable land. they can utilise their land by the migrants who are interested. Because foods are alwayas demanding. So in these case that countries should have a good policies. But they should try to easy the process. If we define the World in two parts like Rich & poor, we never over come the good situation in the world. We need to find out where the cultivable land is free and where the most people are farmer & poor, we need to placing their in those places. Visa is the main trouble for the world. In the other hand terrirism also the making violence. But it is true most of the people of the world hate the terrirism. So if the visa system will be easy and both the sending and receiving countries are be consious we can deploy most of the people all over he world. Where need farmer or worker may be he/she is skill or non/semi skilled we can deploy them all over the world according to the requirments. But if we in undermind that I am reach so we do not get any risk . Poors are gooing to hell. We are always live with happiness. These theme will take more dificult world. So come now, Feel free to all & things for them actually who are needy. thu we can get a Good Earth.

    Sheikh Nasir Ahmed










    by - 16/04/2009 10:31:34


  • The discussion theme is Migrants and present financial crisis. Yes obviously all over the world is now suffering financial crisis.
    According to the theme the 1st question is: The question arises whether migrants are affected by the crisis in a different way than native workers? And if yes, which type of migrants (long term, or recent migrants, lesser skilled or high skilled, those migrating alone or those accompanied by their families) is affected more significantly?
    Before this question we should have the Humanity. Always we say about migrants Rights. But this question fully violates the Human Rights & Security. Firstly I like to tell in this crisis period why we define Native and Migrants. Are The developed countries refused the touch of Migrants who are working to develop their country? If the developed countries cannot refuse this, They should not define Native & Migrants In this Crisis periodic these case their have no question about long term, short term, Skilled & non skilled migrants. All along the community face this crisis.
    The Global Leaders need to make a policy by which migrants can move where the job available all over the world. If we think about the cause of crisis, It will be Imbalance world. There have two important Imbalance situations in the world.
    1. The rich and solvent countries & the poor & non-solvent countries.
    2. The low-density population countries & the high-density population Countries.
    If the rich country thinks that only they live with joy and happiness it may make more crisis from where they also attacked in any way.
    Other hand some countries (e.g. Australia, Canada, Newzeland etc.) have a lot of cultivable land but they have not enough people. But the high-density countries have the more people who can survive by cultivation. So with a good and conditional process world leaders need to make a policy by which the people can migrant all over the world where is needed.
    The world leaders should not take any decision to back home the migrants. If natives can survive themselves, why the migrants are not. By their hard work these countries are become developed. These countries need the same policy for native and all kinds of Migrants.

    Sheikh Nasir Ahmed




    by - 16/04/2009 20:05:40

  • The present financial crisis over the world certainly affects the world economy. It is undoubtedly we can tell that if it is happened, some responsibility involuntarily should recognized by Developed country where the most Migrant (Legal or Undocumented) workers’ have been work. Here we can more inform that all sectors are not in trouble. So if the migrants' can redeploys himself in the same destining country according his won chose the migrants' problem mostly solved. Now World leaders need to announce migrant's sector as thrust sector and allow them to access some support, which they have needed.
    In Bangladesh context migrants’ workers are contributing to a large extent for the development of world economy as well as Bangladesh.It is often noticed that government plays inactive role to solve the problems of migrant workers. In abroad they are to face different problems such as payment of lower salary in relation to contact, humiliation, racial discrimination, loss of valid passport and all documents and ultimately come back to the country with empty handed.
    Migrant workers are basically engaged in inefficient and few efficient works; labor law of the country where they are employed in does not protect migrant workers. Migrant’s workers are deprived of salary, security of work, insurance of accident in working place, different social welfare facilities including treatment. This sector of immeasurable probability has to be saved through adoption of urgent initiatives. This sector would be the base of development of all sending countries if it is possible.

    United Nations formulated “International Convention relating to preservation of right of migrant workers and their family members” on 18 December in 1990 in order to preserve the rights of migrant workers all over the world due to becoming the victim of continuous disadvantage and oppression all over the world. Many countries only consider the interest of their own countries citizen during formulation of law in implementation of different human rights convention. So in this case no body should define Native & Migrants about their salary & other rights. From the thousand years ago Migrants are contribute to developed to the economy of Europe, Canada, Australia, and Middle East. So why we are only anxious about Migrant’s in this crisis moment. Why we are not thinking with the migrants’? For the peacekeeping mission, the army can get a lot of money. They are not called Migrants’. And the present financial crisis is not difficult for that Army Operations. But whose are contribute themselves for developing, that developed country to think to return them or reduce the salary of the migrants’. So I think if the countries of the world reduce the defense budget, the world may over come the present financial crisis.And also if the salary is reduce it should for all.

    We urge the all governments (those countries people are working abroad) to immediately ratify the 1990 UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and their families. This is the first international document that provides assurance to their rights of migrant workers.
    So in these circumstances we need to solidarity with native and migrants and to apply new policy to move globally for the job on the issue One World without Visa. We should make our mentality without discrimination regarding migrants, refugee and native. Because in near future there have come a lot of migration for climate change. We have needed to take necessary steps from now.

    by - Sheikh Nasir Ahmed,HRDIC.



    by Sheikh Nasir Ahmed - 21/04/2009 19:55:32

  • For Bangladeshi Migrant workers, the financial crisis has proved to be a blessing in disguise. The mass number of workers returning has begged the attention of the government to the depraved culture of viewing workers as a commodity.

    Apart from the lack of regulation of the ‘manpower industry’ it has also forced the government to look at rogue industry practices, where the workers have been reduced to modern day slaves.

    Lack of responsibility on the part of the sending countries such as Bangladesh have left the workers both vulnerable and without institutional support, with little hope of the state negotiating on their behalf.

    The financial crisis may force the government(s) tackle the root cause of the problem and costs associated with global marketability of workers. To make the employment of migrant workers sustainable, it is of grave importance that equal emphasis is placed on ensuring their basic rights and investing in adequate skill-building of workers.

    Never before, states like Bangladesh have dealt with such harsh criticism of their role in looking after the wellbeing of their citizens.

    Hence the financial crisis needs to be also looked at by social activists and practitioners as an opportunity to advocate for the strengthening of international instruments, to highlight the deficiencies in the existing mechanisms and promote a fair market for migrant workers.



    by sum.islam - 26/04/2009 14:58:18

  • We the Human Rights Activist are individuals committed to seeing processes through. We analyse and interpret the complex reality of migration, from the perspective of human beings, their dignity, and their human rights. We devise and put into operation multiple and diverse initiatives, by which we continue to carry out our historic leading role in order to construct a different reality:
    Under the current conditions of world capitalism, migrant people are an evident example of economic and social inequality among and within countries. This situation becomes more profound when synchronized with a multidimensional world crisis: economical, environmental, alimentary, and energy based.
    The building of geographic, political, legal, and cultural walls, such as “the shameful” European directive and other public laws and similar official orders, are criminal strategies that look for the largest amount of international capital profit by eliminating all human rights. For this reason, people option to the externalisation of borders, mental internalisation through maltreatment, harassment and deportations, arbitrary detentions, the impunity of border police and detention centres, where the violation of human rights is commonplace.
    We insist that the bilateral and regional work agreements inspired by the Philippine model of temporary programs for guest workers, which prevents one’s loss of cultural roots and annuls any possibility of claiming one’s rights, bringing about the excessive exploitation and dehumanisation of workers, honour in it’s entirety the established obligations of the 97th and 143rd agreements of the ILO. Without doing so, the integral deterioration of Human Labour will increase, loosing salary, social, and judicial value, transforming migrant people into merchandise.
    While facing labour that is forced, slave-like, and precarious, we declare the need to defend, demand, and extend dignified work for a dignified life, which integrates liberty, equality of treatment, and adequate financial situations for all working people.
    We value economic initiatives of solidarity, which strengthen the network of associates and contribute to social economic processes and the integral development of people. We reject its use as an instrument for denying migrant rights.
    We encourage universal citizenship and we ratify the right for people to freely move as established in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

    By Sheikh Nasir Ahmed, HRDIC, Bangladesh



    by Sheikh Nasir Ahmed - 10/05/2009 19:04:44

  • The current financial crisis has badly effected on migration and development. Many people have become jobless and homeless. But in most of the cases migrants have become the first target of job cut. It is true that industrialised nations, especially G-8 countries are facing tremendous economic problem due to financial crisis. Recently, United States has taken a stimulus package and the Congress has passed a mammoth bailout package to revive their financial and corporate sectors. Very recently, in the G-20 summit and also in G-8 summit, developed and developing countries have agreed to create a fund. In the recent G-20 Summit in London all countries have agreed and given commitments to strengthen the financial system and additional resources amounting to 1.1 trillion dollars to support jobs and growth across the World. This fund will be channelled through multilateral donor agencies like IMF, World Bank etc.
    Some Developed countries have undertaken some social security or social safety net initiatives to restore the livelihood of their citizens. But it is yet unclear to all of us whether theses developed countries or host countries have undertaken any initiative on social security or social safety net programme for migrants.
    Many migrants both temporary and permanent or Diaspora are facing job cut due to global financial crisis. Many temporary migrants are compelled to return home. But it is very difficult for permanent migrants or Diaspora to take decision to leave the country where they migrated. It is more difficult for undocumented migrants to take decision to leave country of destination, because most of their documents are under process to become permanent resident. So the life of both temporary migrants and permanent migrants or Diaspora has become miserable both in their country of destination and country of origin. In country of origin, the family members are waiting for remittances.
    Now the question how developed countries or country of destination could help these temporary migrants and permanent migrants or Diaspora? The developed countries or country of destination could help these temporary migrants and permanent migrants or Diaspora following way:

    Create social security or social safety net fund for migrants: United States and other G-8 developed countries have already declared bailout package and some other stimulus package for financial and corporate sector to revive. G-20 and G-8 developed countries have also agreed to create fund to cope with these financial crisis and channel those fund through multilateral donor agencies like IMF and World Bank. I think that G-8 developed countries and other destination counties should create a social security or social safety net fund for migrants. Now the question, how the migrants will be benefited from this fund?
    * Jobless migrants will receive monthly pension from this fund whether they stay in host country or even return to home country. In future after getting job, the migrants will return this fund either with interest or without interest.
    * Methodology to disburse Fund: This social security or social safety net fund for migrants could be disbursed through UNDP or IOM or any UN agency. There will be a central fund at UN Head quarter. UN office of every country will collect the list of migrants and returnee migrants. In country of destination, UN office will prepare list of migrants and in country of origin, UN office will prepare list of returnee migrants. After preparing list, UN office will disburse monthly pension fund to these migrants. There should be proper guidelines for disbursing this pension fund. The amount of pension will depend on living standard of migrant's country of stay and number of their dependent.
    * Repayment or refund of this pension fund: In future when the migrants will get a job to repay the pension fund, then the migrants will repay this fund in instalments to the UN office of respective country where they will stay.

    Reformulate Immigration and Employment Policy for migrants: The host countries should reformulate immigration policy for temporary migrants, documented and undocumented migrants. The reformulation of immigration and employment policy could be done following way:
    For Temporary migrants: Host country will keep record of temporary migrants who lost their job due to financial crisis and compelled to return home. After reviving of economy, the host country will again recruit these temporary migrants without any recruitment fee or even provide air-fare to join in the work.
    For Documented migrants: The host country will keep record of their documented migrants who are bounded to return to home country due to financial crisis. After mitigating crisis the host country will provide all necessary support to these documented migrants.
    For Undocumented or document under processed migrants: The host country will keep record of all undocumented or document under processed migrants and assure them to give opportunity to come back even if they return their home country. The host country will process document for the undocumented migrants even if they are staying in home country.


    Regards,

    Mohammad Rashed Al Hasan
    Project Manager (Remittances)
    INAFI Bangladesh



    by admin - 16/05/2009 16:02:15


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About On Line Dialogue

 

The CSD Athens 2009 organizers have launched the On-Line Dialogue platform in order to facilitate the widest possible exchange of views between Civil Society partners all over the world and to enable interested participants to get informed about this year’s Civil Society Days.

 

The online dialogue is open in 4 languages: English, French, Spanish and Greek. It takes the form of a blog section where topics/questions are raised and both individuals and organizations are welcome to reply and comment on. (Please note that there will be a short time lapse from when a comment is submitted to the online dialogue website to when it will be published). To contribute your thoughts and comments and participate in the online dialogue, you must register with the CSD/GFMD Athens 2009 website. To register, click here.

 

The issues of debate are proposed by the Organizing Committee of CSD Athens 2009. Each topic/question will be “open” for comments and responses for a 15-day period. At the end of this period, the blog moderators will draft a summary of what has been discussed. Summaries will be posted in the language of the blog and in English. The online dialogue input will be used as background material for consideration during the two-day CSD conference.

 

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