Moving Workers

This book examines the psychological pressures faced by workers who migrate for short periods, exploring what it means to work in high-stress environments, often on time-limited contracts and with low levels of support; and how best to protect this kind of key worker. The text addresses three central questions. First, how we can think about the experiences of workers on the move? Second, what forms of support given by who, and when, provide the best staff care? Finally, how can appropriate and timely staff support by organisations influence the lives of workers on the move? The authors, all psychological therapists and many former international workers, offer recommendations for workers in humanitarian aid, the mission sector, international contracting and seafaring, among others, taking into account the changing world of work, and the impact on this of the Covid-19 pandemic. Psychological Support for Workers on the Move provides essential guidance to organisations posting personnel internationally, to psychological and wellbeing therapists working with them, and to individual workers themselves

This book tells the story of the complete move in 1965/1966 of Alfred Bird and Sons Limited from central Birmingham to Banbury, in which a large proportion of the labour force was successfully transferred. Focusing on the relocation decision made by individual employees, the author also contributed to many varied areas of debate.

The temporary movement of labor is one mode of delivering services across borders. Unlike the movement of capital, and despite significant returns to mobility, labor movement remains highly restricted and politically sensitive. To circumvent this problem, the use of bilateral labor agreements (BLAs) may serve as a potential complementary means of increasing temporary labor mobility, particularly among workers in the services sector. BLAs are generally not part of trade agreements, nor are they designed to promote services exports by the sending country, although they could be used to do so. Let Workers Move: Using Bilateral Labor Agreements to Increase Trade in Services assesses what has been achieved so far in trade agreements in terms of the temporary movement of services providers and explores how BLAs might allow countries--especially developing countries--to focus on the temporary movement of very specific categories of workers, such as computer programmers or electricians within the construction sector. It also reviews case studies from Europe, North America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific to examine the viability and performance of BLAs as a complement to other efforts to liberalize the temporary movement of people. This book will be useful to policymakers interested in expanding opportunities for services trade, academics in developing countries interested in trade as a development tool, and experts involved in trade negotiations. The questions raised in Let Workers Move will motivate new research and guide the analysis of economic policy on services trade in terms of its interaction with the temporary movement of people.

Are migrant workers needed to 'do the jobs that locals will not do' or are they simply a more exploitable labour force? Do they have a better 'work ethic' or are they less able to complain? Is migrant labour the solution to 'skills shortages' or actually part of the problem? This book provides a comprehensive framework for analysing the demand for migrant workers in high-income countries. It demonstrates how a wide range of government policies, often unrelated to migration, contribute to creating a growing demand for migrant labour. This demand can persist even during economic downturns. The book includes quantitative and qualitative analyses of the changing role of migrants in the UK economy. The empirical chapters include in-depth examinations of the nature of staff shortages and the use of migrant workers in six sectors: health; social care; hospitality; food production; construction; and financial services. The book' s conceptual framework and empirical findings are of importance to academic and policy debates about labour immigration in all high-income countries. The final chapter presents a comparative analysis of research and policy approaches to assessing labour shortages in the UK and the US. It examines the potential lessons of the UK's Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) for current debates about labour shortages and immigration reform in the US. The book will be of significant interest to policy-makers, stakeholders, academics and students.

This book describes the challenges facing the country's working poor, drawing lessons from practice and policy to recommend approaches for helping low-wage workers advance to better-paying jobs. Part I overviews the low-wage workforce and the employers who hire them, and Part II summarizes the evidence on strategies to improve workers' skills, supplement their wages, and provide greater support. Part III focuses on challenges encountered by groups such as women and immigrants, and Part IV assesses the potential contributions of community colleges, employers, and unions. Much of this material originated at a May 2000 conference held in Washington, DC. The editors are affiliated with Jobs for the Future. c. Book News Inc.

Ebook: Urban Economics