Towards A Decent Labour Market For Low Waged Migrant Workers

This anthology analyzes low-wage migrant workers in Europe from many perspectives, including migration policies, human rights, economics, and more. Free movement of workers and services in the EU calls into question the extent to which the labor market and its institutions are able to counteract negative consequences, such as downward wage pressures and abuse of workers. These essays flesh out the imbalances that unfairly disadvantage low-wage workers, shed light on their causes, and discuss possible solutions.

This anthology analyses low-wage migrant workers in Europe from many perspectives, including migration policies, human rights, economics, and more.

Over the past decade, Canada has experienced considerable growth in labour migration. Moreover, temporary labour migration has replaced permanent immigration as the primary means by which people enter Canada. Utilizing the rhetoric of maintaining competitiveness, Canadian employers and the state have ushered in an era of neoliberal migration alongside an agenda of austerity flowing from capitalist crisis. Labour markets have been restructured to render labour more flexible and precarious, and in Canada as in other high-income capitalist labour markets, employers are relying on migrant and immigrant workers as “unfree labour.” This book explores labour migration to Canada and how public policies of temporary and guest worker programs function in the global context of work and capitalist restructuring. Contributors are directly engaged with the issues emerging from the influx of temporary foreign workers and Canada’s “creeping economic apartheid”—the ongoing racialization of economic inequality for many workers of colour. The collection also examines how migrant and immigrant workers have organized for justice and dignity in Canada. As opposed to a good deal of current writing that often ignores the working conditions and struggles of racialized migrant and immigrant workers, the authors contend that migrant workers, labour organizations, and migrant worker allies have engaged in a wide range of organizing initiatives with significant political and economic impacts. These have included both court challenges to secure legal rights to unionization and grassroots alternatives to traditional forms of unionization through workers’ centres. Contributors include Aziz Choudry, Adrian A. Smith, Sedef Arat-Koç, Abigail B. Bakan, Joey Calugay, Jennifer Jihye Chun, Jill Hanley, Jah-Hon Koo, Mostafa Henaway, Deena Ladd, Marco Luciano, Loïc Malhaire, Adriana Paz Ramirez, Geraldina Polanco, Chris Ramsaroop, Eric Shragge, Sonia Singh, Christopher C. Sorio, and Mark Thomas.

The migration of workers to the high growth countries in Pacific Asia in the 1980s was a new phenomenon in these countries. As such the host governments did not have in place adequate housing, social security and legal protection, but the tight controls following the financial crisis have pushed these issues to the back burner. This volume discusses the debates and controversies surrounding this issue in Malaysia, Taiwan, SIngapore, South Korea, Japan and China.

There are almost 200 million migrants in the world today. The majority of people leaving their home countries are migrating for work and almost half of them are women. The contribution of these workers is evident, yet many work in unacceptable conditions, denied access to social protection and their labour rights. With its mandate on all labour issues, the ILO has built up a wealth of knowledge on migration for employment, in terms of both original research and the rich experience of its Members - governments, employers and trade unions - in dealing with migrant workers. Drawing on these unique resources, this book offers a comprehensive and accessible overview of international labour migration and the ILO's efforts to protect migrant workers through a rights-based approach. This book gives new insights into the factors that motivate people to seek work outside their country of origin and the significant development effects on both origin and destination countries. Exposing the often limited access of migrant workers to their fundamental rights at work, the book describes in detail the international norms that have evolved to protect migrant workers and ensure decent work for all. It reflects on existing and potential international governance structures and addresses linkages between migration and development. The book reviews the ILO's Multilateral Framework on Labour Migration and discusses its role in improving policy-making and upgrading international cooperation in the area of labour migration. Book jacket.

This manual sets out the considerations and options that policy-makers and academics can draw upon when they are faced with questions on migrant workers, such as the involvement of employers' and workers' organizations, the irregular inflow of workers, illegal employment and whom to admit and under what conditions.; The book should be especially useful in countries confronted for the first time with the employment of foreigners.

International labour migration can be characterized in three ways - as human aspiration, tradition, and necessity. For some people, working overseas is a dream. For others, international labour mobility is a tradition. For a great number of people however, international labour migration is an economic necessity. It is the only viable solution to realize their basic human right to a decent life. GMS worker movements to Thailand typify all three characterizations of international labour mobility. While this book focuses on the economic dimensions of international labour emigration, principally from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam to Thailand, it recognizes at the very outset the equal standing of non-economic motivations for migration.