National migration policies across Europe continue to offer decent labour migration opportunities largely to workers with offers for highly-paid employment or for very specific skills shortages. Accessible and decent labour migration pathways across various occupations remain very limited, despite labour market demand. Mechanisms such as quotas, shortage occupation lists, and labour market tests are implemented in a way that blocks – or creates over-burdensome administrative hurdles to – the employment of migrant workers in key occupations.

Those pathways that are available often provide work permits with restrictions on workers’ labour market mobility and rights. The multiplication of rules, permits and statuses creates a complex regulatory framework for authorities, employers and workers to navigate. It leads to fragmentation of the labour market and contributes to undeclared work. Single employer-tied permits are of particular concern, creating the conditions for dependency and exploitation. They also hinder flexibility in the labour market and workforce to adapt to employers’ and workers’ needs. The lack of attention to migrant workers’ perspectives, autonomy and investments in their labour migration projects also leads to blind spots in policy-making and limits positive outcomes for all involved.

In this context, there is a vast decent work deficit with high levels of wage theft, workplace accidents and labour exploitation, as well as risks of debt bondage and trafficking in human beings. Gender, class and racial inequalities and discrimination are being reproduced.

Designing Labour Migration Policies to Promote Decent Work - PICUM, 2021 DOWNLOAD

post

page

attachment

revision

nav_menu_item

custom_css

customize_changeset

oembed_cache

user_request

wp_block

wp_template

wp_template_part

wp_global_styles

wp_navigation

wp_font_family

wp_font_face

acf-taxonomy

acf-post-type

acf-field-group

acf-field

ai1ec_event

exactmetrics_note

Best Practices Guide on Keeping Children Safe in Sports
Good Practices

Every year, thousands of children choose to join a sports club or to participate in recreational activities such as day camps and summer camps. Participation in these activities promotes healthy child development. However, one should also be aware t...Read More

Addressing the Retention of Identity Documents
GuidanceGood Practices

This document calls on businesses to prohibit worker document retention and gives best practice guidance.

Battling Human Trafficking: A Scrutiny of Private Sector Obligations under the Modern Slavery Act
News & AnalysisPublications

Battling Human Trafficking: How Far Have We Come and Where Do We Go From Here? A Scrutiny of Private Sector Obligations under the Modern Slavery Act by Lucia Bird Ruiz-Benitez de Lugo co-published by the Global Initiative against Transnational Or...Read More

TAGS: Europe
Underground Lives: Aspirational Britain: Survivors of Modern Slavery Want to Work Too
News & AnalysisPublications

Britain is in an employment crisis. Labour shortages are hitting record highs and firms are recruiting from abroad which is costly. At the same time there are currently more than 7,000 survivors of modern slavery who are being supported by the G...Read More

TAGS: Europe