Why we need more labour migration

Caritas Europa published a new briefing paper which highlights the indispensable contribution that migrants make to Europe’s society and economy. It provides an analysis of why decision-makers must expand labour migration policies that put workers’ rights and the fight against exploitation at the centre.

We stress that migration policies must provide efficient administrative procedures and a secure residence permit with solid rights that facilitate social inclusion and family reunification to ensure the full participation of migrants in the country of destination.

The interests and needs of the countries of origin should also be at the core of all migration policies to ensure that mobility is beneficial for all countries involved and does not lead to brain drain.

Our briefing paper outlines policy recommendations calling EU institutions and EU Member States among others to:

• Expand regular labour migration pathways for different skill sets (including low and medium skills), ensuring decent working conditions;
• Prioritise secure and sustainable residence statuses and clear, efficient, and accessible administrative procedures that enable access to the social security system in the host country and avoid the risk of precarity and exploitation;
• Constructively negotiate the reform of the Single Permit Directive and the Long-Term Residents’ Directive, reinforcing provisions facilitating smooth access to a secure permit, lasting integration, intra-EU mobility, and strengthening migrant workers’ rights and the fight against exploitation;
• Scale up the development of mobility partnerships with non-EU countries to target a larger number of non-EU countries and migrants across various sectors and skill sets;
• Ensure that labour migration policies do not contribute to brain drain and care drain by, for instance, ensuring safeguards and ethical recruitment and facilitating circular labour migration;
• Facilitate and promote family unity and the reunification of migrant workers, including low and middle-skilled workers so as to ensure that the right to family life is respected;
• Strengthen the prevention and protection of migrant workers from exploitation by promoting formal employment and increasing labour inspections and enforcing existing rules and sanctions against workers’ exploitation;
• Ensure an inclusive labour market with equal rights, fair treatment and non-discrimination for all workers so that migrant workers in the EU have the same rights and obligations in terms of work, salary, social benefits and protection as other workers;
• Improve and facilitate the mutual recognition between Member States and in general the recognition of educational and professional qualifications and work experiences attained abroad, including soft skills;
• Consider regularisation as a policy option, among others, that can make sense for economic, social, humanitarian and public health reasons for migrants in situations of irregularity, taking into account the recommendations we outline in our briefing paper on regularisation.