High level manpower movements in Northwest Europe and the role of careers: an explanatory framework

"This article works towards a theoretical explanatory framework for analyzing the geographical patterns of labor flows between the industrial countries of Western Europe. The framework proposed is based on the disaggregated nature of the modern labor market, in which specialist skills and training result in a workforce segmented into self-contained noncompeting groups. It is applied to the migration within Northwest Europe of high level manpower, especially those moving within multinational organizations."     

Emigration dynamics in southern Africa

This review of the dynamics of international migration in Southern Africa focuses on four aspects of labor migration: 1) while migrant workers suffer from discrimination and lack of protection, there are few alternatives for them; 2) the regulations imposed by the Chamber of Mines in South Africa favor the mining industry at the expense of the workers; 3) worker supplier states have few options for negotiating a commercialized migration policy to achieve economic benefits; and 4) foreign mine workers must unionize in order to escape perpetual subordination. The review opens with a consideration of how migrant mine workers from Botswana, Lesotho, and Swaziland have provided a source of cheap labor which has enhanced the economic prosperity of South Africa. The role of the Chamber of Mines in regulating the supply of labor and employment policy for its members is described. Attention is then turned to Lesotho where land pressure has exacerbated poverty levels. Large-scale migration has led the citizens of Lesotho to consider it a place to live or retire to, not a place to work. Labor migration from Lesotho is organized, is supported by the government, is recurrent, and remains a viable alternative despite faltering demand. The discussion of Lesotho includes a consideration of its political, economic, and demographic situation as well as of ecological factors. Briefer analyses are then provided for Botswana, Swaziland, and Mozambique. The receiving country, South Africa, is shown to be suffering a decline in economic growth which is marked by widespread unemployment. More than 250,000 Whites are prospective emigrants from South Africa. After considering the issues surrounding refugees, regional concerns created by changing economic and political scenarios, and labor strategies which could be adopted by supplier states, the report reiterates a series of recommendations which arose from two major conferences on the problem of unemployment. It is concluded that the tendency to emigrate is fostered by landlessness (Lesotho), surplus labor (Botswana and Swaziland), and political and economic underdevelopment (Mozambique). In order to redirect migrant flows, policies must address labor migration, political refugees, urban-rural dynamics, job-creation, income distribution, and democratization.     

Foreign Workforce in the Arab Gulf States (1930–1950): Migration Patterns and Nationality Clause1

The modern migration pattern of international migration in the Arab Gulf States (AGSs) began to take shape with the discovery of oil resources. The early development of the oil industry in the 1930s became the driving force behind the first organized import of foreign workers to the oil‐producing countries of the AGSs. The historical approach of this article explains the impact that the early oil concessions had on the migration patterns in the AGSs. The nationality clause provoked, not only a circulation of manpower from one sheikhdom to another and international migration, but also created a segmentation of the labor market on the grounds of nationality.     

CAPITAL MARKET IMPERFECTIONS, LABOR MARKET DISEQUILIBRIUM AND MIGRATION: A THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS

Traditional analyses of the determinants of migration in less developed countries have focused on labor market conditions. This paper adapts a simple model to show that capital market conditions may be an important factor in individuals' migration decisions. Data from Ecuador are used to test this model, and the empirical results confirm the role of capital market imperfections—chiefly caused by financial repression—in shaping migration flows. Traditional labor market factors still matter, but the new finding may provide policy makers with new and lower-cost tools with which to affect migration outcomes.     

A Global Labor Market: Factors Motivating the Sponsorship and Temporary Migration of Skilled Workers to Australia1

The recruitment of skilled foreign workers is becoming increasingly important to many industrialized countries. This paper examines the factors motivating the sponsorship and temporary migration of skilled workers to Australia under the temporary business entry program, a new development in Australia's migration policy. The importance of labor demand in the destination country in stimulating skilled temporary migration is clearly demonstrated by the reasons given by employers in the study while the reasons indicated by skilled temporary migrants for coming to work in Australia show the importance of both economic and non‐economic factors in motivating skilled labor migration.     

“Live in Israel. Live the Dream”: Identity,Belonging, and Contemporary American Jewish Migration to Israel

Most current sociological literature on migration examines international moves to the United States and internal migration. Scant research addresses religious migration out of the United States. Utilizing in-depth, semi-structured interviews, we explore motivations behind recent American Jewish migration to Israel and how Jewish identity plays a role in the decision to move. We find that a combination of religious and cultural factors, Zionism, social networks, and the desire for a new start play a major role in motivating migration to Israel. Jewish identity is a common thread across these motivations. Many participants created a strong bond between their Judaism and Israel, viewing their connection to Israel as a way to belong to a larger community and demonstrate their attachment to Judaism. We discuss the implications for studying religious emigration from the United States that move beyond traditional economic models.     

Major obstacles to control of irregular migrations: prerequisites to policy

This paper examines 3 basic obstacles thwarting all attempts to reduce irregular migration. The 1st, rather well known and analyzed, underscores the dependency of all regulation of migratory flows on the system of economic and political relations between developed and developing countries. The 2nd obstacle resides in the persistance and growth of subsequent dependent irregular migration. This obstacle also reveals the relative autonomy of population movements compared with the employment situation in the labor market. The 3rd generally ignored obstacle is the role played by migration itself, particularly the discriminatory status of foreign workers in the labor market, in producing irregular migration.     

The employment of migrant workers in West Germany and Belgium. A comparative illustration of the life-cycle of economic migration (1960-1980)

A comparison of foreign labor migration patterns in Belgium and the Federal Republic of Germany is presented for the period from the 1960s to the 1980s. The authors note that this migration follows a structural pattern, which they classify as the life cycle of economic migration, and is strictly linked to trends in the economy. However, a cyclical pattern of migration exists in Germany but not in Belgium. The reasons for the differences observed are considered, and the authors suggest that these differences may be due to the longer tradition of economic immigration existing in Belgium. Thus, immigrants are more integrated into the Belgian economy, whereas they are more separated in Germany and therefore more susceptible to ebbs and flows caused by changing migration policies.     

Migration to European Countries: A Structural Explanation of Patterns, 1980–20041

Various theoretical approaches have provided us with insights to explain the pattern of migration flows. Economic theory considers migration to be a reaction to labor market and economic incentives. Cultural theories predict that migration flows will occur according to a center‐periphery pattern, while social network analysis assumes that migrants follow already established migration networks. We test these three approaches simultaneously, using OECD and Eurostat data on the migrant inflow into the European countries between 1980 and 2004. The analysis demonstrates that migration flows react to economic incentives, mainly with regard to the labor market, but also to cultural and colonial linkages. There is no indication that the importance of the colonial past is declining over time. The response of migration patterns to shortages in the labor market is shown to be highly efficient, while the analysis shows that immigrants are not attracted by high levels of social expenditure.     

Labor Shortages and U.S. Immigration Reform: Promises and Perils of an Independent Commission

Comprehensive U.S. immigration reform proposals have three major elements: improved border and workplace controls, dealing with the 11 million unauthorized foreigners in the U.S., and managing “future flows” of foreign workers requested by U.S. employers. Improved controls and dealing with unauthorized foreigners were discussed extensively in the U.S. Senate in 2006 and 2007. Future flows were not. This article reviews the decisions governments face when employers request migrant workers, Britain’s independent Migration Advisory Committee, and the promises and perils of a similar U.S. commission to manage labor migration. We conclude that a U.S. commission could help to clarify the trade‐offs involved in migrant labor policy, but cannot replace the need for inherently political choices between competing policy objectives.     

The immigration of Asian professionals to the United States: 1988-1990

"This article examines recent flows of Asian professionals to the United States based on the Immigration and Naturalization Service data for the fiscal years 1988-1990. Three specific dimensions of the Asian migration stream were investigated, namely, size, composition and mode of entry. The results show that Asians emerge as a dominant group in the immigration of all professionals. An examination of mode of entry indicates an existing demand for foreign professionals of certain occupational backgrounds in the U.S. labor market.... The argument that the outflow of the highly trained Asians is simply a matter of migration and education is not fully supported by the data."     

Commitment,ethnicity and class as factors in emigration of kibbutz and non kibbutz populations from Israel

The author examines the motivating factors involved in the migration from Israel of kibbutz and non-kibbutz populations. "The burden of the research done until now suggests that an individual's level of commitment is a major predictor of the predisposition to emigrate. This research will be surveyed, reanalyzed in part, with new emphasis on ethnicity and class, and compared with new research on emigration from the kibbutzim which should provide unique insights into the connection between commitment and departure." Data are from two surveys, a 1986 survey of the general population and one of four kibbutzim in 1985.     

Modes of labor market incorporation and occupational cost among new immigrants to Israel

"The present study contributes to the literature on international migration by examining social, demographic and contextual factors that influence modes of labor market incorporation and occupational cost among new immigrants during their first years after migration. The data for the analysis were obtained from the 1983 Census of Population conducted by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics. The analysis focuses on men who immigrated to Israel between 1979 to 1983.... The data reveal that the likelihood of finding employment, the mode of labor market incorporation, and the size of the occupational cost are significantly affected by geocultural origin, occupation in the country of origin, and individual-level demographic and human capital resources. The meaning of the differentiated effects are discussed in detail. The findings point toward two central aspects that should be examined in the study of labor market incorporation of new immigrants: employment status and occupational cost."     

U.S. immigration policy: the guestworker option revisited

In guestworker programs foreign nationals are admitted into another country on a nonmigrant status with severely curtailed social and limited labor market rights. The duration of stay is always finite and compliance with the terms of the contract are entered through a network of legal arrangements which allow officials in the receiving country a substantial amount of administrative discretion. Pro-guestworker arguments say that the borders cannot be closed, that guestworkers can be substituted for illegal aliens, that guestworkers are better than illegal aliens, and that additional labor benefits the US economy. Those against guestworker programs stress longterm socioeconomic issues rather than short-term economic advantages, saying that guestworker programs are no quick answer for illegal immigration, for domestic labor shortages, or for the US poor population. Guestworker programs, its opponents say, provide short-run economic benefits to a few employers and individuals at the expense of more widespread and longterm socioeconomic costs. They oppose: 1) the concept of admitting foreign workers with restricted rights, 2) the concentration of any negative labor market impacts on already disadvantaged domestic groups, 3) the proliferation of "jobs which Americans won't take," 4) many temporary guests ending up permanent residents, and 5) that exporting workers is as likely to impede as accelerate job-creating economic development in immigration countries. Most economists believe that diminishing marginal productivity produces downward-sloping short-run demand for labor schedules. The European experience with these programs has been different than those in the US since foreign workers in Europe were initially recruited in response to actual labor shortages and have always had legal status, but both Europe and the US have experienced large contingents of workers who remain in the countries and are at a pronounced power disadvantage regarding the society's institutions. Studies of guestworker programs have shown that worker flows eventually become impervious to the receiver's actual labor needs as employers disaggregate jobs into components which match the low skills of migrants and create additional foreign worker jobs which are then shunned by native labor, thus perpetuating a need for such labor. If the US opts for a large-scale guestworker program this will only replace 1 set of problems with another and it is not at all certain that large-scale guestworker admissions will proportionately reduce illegal migration inflows.     

Migration among East and Southeast Asian Economies

Conventional studies focus on why migration occurs between a particular pair of places. Our study asks a different question: what characteristics of the origin and destination places can explain migration flows between any two places in a region. Our study explores how economic, political, and geographic factors influence bilateral migration flows within a region in which various countries are increasingly being integrated into the regional as well as into the global economy. Drawing from diverse data sources, we explore migration flows among various economies in East and Southeast Asia between 2000 and 2005 and 2005 and 2010. Our analyses yielded two major findings. First, the relationship between economic factors and the volume of migration flows depends on the overall economy in the region. Second, the findings reveal a consistently robust and significant relationship between geographic proximity and migration flow. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

An overview of present and future emigration dynamics in South Asia

The author presents preliminary findings on selected aspects of the dynamics which govern emigration from and within the South Asian region comprised of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The paper attempts to identify some of the major reasons for observed migration flows and how the future may be envisaged especially in view of government programs, policies, and priorities. Contract labor migration is given special attention since it has become the predominant type of migration in the region. Sections consider a possible conceptual framework; measuring emigration pressure or potential; data and data problems; the volume of emigration since 1970; South Asian migrant workers; macro-level determinants of emigration; community, family, and individual factors; and sending country policies. The consequences of emigration are discussed in terms of the impacts upon the labor force and non-economic consequences. Observations for the future conclude the paper. Analysis of the dynamics of emigration from South Asia indicate an urgent need to improve data on various forms of emigration, that relevant officials in countries of origin have a longstanding concern about the exploitation of workers in sending as well as receiving countries, and the need to better understand the linkages between various factors relevant to the emigration process. An understanding of such linkages would allow for more realistic policies and planning for future emigration.     

1990年之后东京大城市圈的空间重构

本文探讨了1990年以来东京大城市圈空间扩展与变迁以及全球化对东京的影响。全球化对城市空间的重构有很大影响,经济全球化背景下,资本流动、劳动力转移、产业结构变化等因素是影响城市空间重构的主要要素。因此,需要从全球化的视角审视城市发展。     

Nanny politics

This article examines the new migration of Peruvian domestic workers into Santiago, Chile, where laws protecting the labor rights of household workers have recently been strengthened. Through field observations and interviews, we found that employers were disgruntled with Chilean workers who had begun to assert demands. Many of them preferred Peruvian workers, not because the labor was cheaper, but because foreign workers were more compelled to perform a traditional deference and servility. We argue that the Peruvian migrants' relative disempowerment was the product not only of the economic inequality between states, but also the process of migration itself, as well as popular ideological discourses about development, race and gender that rationalized and perpetuated a transnational division of labor in the household. Ultimately, this study illustrates how the role of the ‘servile’ woman in the household persists when women are transnationally mobile, despite the growing empowerment of both professional and working-class Chilean women in the public sphere. The article concludes with recommendations for change to improve the conditions of both native-born and foreign domestic workers.     

New Global Politics of Reproductive Labor: Gendered Labor and Marriage Migration

The feminization of international migration nowadays has demonstrated a new global politics of reproductive labor (work necessary for the reproduction of families). This paper reviews recent studies that manifest similarity, affinity, and continuity across multiple forms of reproductive labor carried out by migrant women in four aspects. First, the recruitment of women as foreign maids or foreign brides provides class‐specific parallel strategies to the global care crisis. Second, paid and unpaid forms of reproductive labor constitute intersecting circuits of labor and marriage migration through which women partake in continuous migration. Third, various categories of migrant women are discursively conflated and attached to similar images as sexualized others. Finally, global care chains not only involve migrant reproductive labor conducted at home but also operate on the level of social reproduction as indicated by the expansion of international nursing migration.     

Making a living at the interface of legality and illegality: Chinese migrant workers in Israel1

Since the late 1990s, Israel has become a new destination for Chinese migrant workers. In the view of many studies conducted in Israel, the Chinese migrant workers are often a neglected and almost invisible group. The purpose of this paper is to explore the initiation of this migration trend and its social consequences. The major discussion of this study focuses on how the whole process of migration is carried out at the interface between legality and illegality. Research in the sending area suggests that the urgent need for manual labour in Israel provides possibilities to attract both documented and undocumented migrant workers and therefore turns labour transportation into a profitable business. Although no one agrees that undocumented working activities should continue, all of the factors interact and result in a permissive situation allowing this particular combination of the illegal but licit to persist in transnational labour migration. More than anything else, this micro‐level study attempts to find the true story from the individual voices of local people.