Labour migration in European countries: In-between legal categories, exploitation, and socio-economic consequences

• Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies
• Migration Working Group
• MPC: Migration Policy Centre

How might the complexities of diverse labor migration policies increase the risks of precariousness for migrant populations?

This session will compare labour migration in two European countries: Sweden and Italy. In Sweden, using Swedish registry data, one paper will show how labour immigration policy – specifically continuity of employment and residence permit conditions– create constraints on labour migration, leading to path-dependency in the long term for immigrants’ labour trajectories. In comparison, through an ethnographic study of an Indian Sikh community in Italy, another paper will reveal how the labour integration of foreign workers contributes to fragile working conditions, exploitation, and ethnicization processes. Together, both presentations will point to continuing challenges of diverse labour migration policies, and their risks in exacerbating precariousness and marginalisation for migrant populations.

The Migration Working Group (MWG) is a researcher-led research group, whose aim is to foster exchange on the latest, cutting-edge migration research and give the opportunity to early career scholars and PhD researchers to present their research.