Migrant Workforce Research Articles (Page 1)

Review: Attracting and retaining a farm workforce for the pork industry.

Language communication in caregiving between care recipients and care workers is essential for the well-being and overall care experiences of both parties. However, challenges arise in language communication when care workers and/or recipients are linguistic minorities. With the increasing reliance on migrant workforces in the care industry globally, language communication challenges require careful attention. Research indicates that migrant care workers, many of whom are linguistic minorities, often report lower job satisfaction due to high job demands, limited social support, stress related to acculturation, and discrimination both within work and outside of their care roles. However, current studies on aging, health, and migration often overlook the exploration of language communication experiences in caregiving from the perspective of care workers. Unlike conventional research that frames language communication challenges merely as "language barriers," our study critically examines the experiences of Japanese care workers' experiences, through the lens of linguicism, language ideologies, and Bourdieu's symbolic violence theory. Drawing insights from in-depth interviews (n = 10), our analysis reveals various forms of linguicism faced by the study participants. Some participants experienced discrimination due to their accents and overall language proficiency, both from care recipients and co-workers. Interpersonal linguicism is evident, but many participants also internalized language oppression.

Migrant workforce in the unorganised sector are often excluded from social protection and welfare schemes due to systemic barriers, particularly the lack of proper documentation and identification. This issue became even more pronounced during crisis of COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the urgent need to extend comprehensive social protection to migrant workers. Recognizing this gap, the Ministry of Labour and Employment launched the ‘e-Shram Portal’ to create a national database of unorganised workers including migrants. Since its launch, the e-Shram portal has functioned merely as a ‘registration drive’ for workers and has been silent on their inclusion in social security. To enhance accessibility, the ministry recently introduced the ‘One-Stop Solution’, which facilitates seamless access to social security schemes for e-Shram registrants, including migrants. While this is a significant step forward, several challenges persist. Issues such as technical glitches, difficulties in registration due to limited digital literacy, language barriers, migratory status and inadequate outreach to migrant communities hinder the effective utilisation of the portal. With the right measures in place, the e-Shram Portal can be an opportunity and a transformative tool to ensure the benefits of social protection reach all eligible migrants.

IntroductionInternational medical graduates are an important migrant workforce with unique challenges which may compound mental health outcomes. We examined the rates of self-reported wellbeing, psychological distress and burnout by IMGs in Australia by undertaking a cross-sectional survey of IMGs.MethodsIn late 2023, an online survey of three validated self-reporting mental health instruments was distributed non-randomly to IMGs across Australia, to identify symptoms of wellbeing, likelihood of psychological distress, and burnout.ResultsOf the 286 participants who started the survey, 199 completed the Wellbeing instrument, 191 completed the Kessler (K6) instrument, and 181 completed the Burnout instrument. The calculated wellbeing mean score of participants was 54.6/100 [SD 23.18; median score: 80/100 (27 participants); range: 0–100]. 30/191 (15.7%) participants recorded a K6 score between 19 and 30, indicating a high likelihood of serious psychological distress. 84/181 (46.4%) participants recorded a score indicating some level of burnout. Statistically significant associations (p < 0.001) between ‘Wellbeing’ and ‘Burnout’ versus “Discrimination experienced in the last 5 years” were identified.DiscussionIMGs may be at risk of poor mental health outcomes resulting from their unique experiences, including perceived discrimination. Further exploration in larger and more robust studies is recommended to confirm preliminary findings and address challenges faced by this important migrant workforce.

Epidemiological trends and forecasting of tuberculosis burden in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries: Evidence from global burden of disease 1990-2021.

IntroductionInternational labor migrants form a significant part of the global workforce, particularly in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, which host around 11% of the world’s migrant workforce. This high concentration presents unique challenges in healthcare access and delivery. This systematic review aims to evaluate whether international labor migrants in GCC countries have effective access to healthcare for work-related diseases and injuries and to propose evidence-based recommendations for policy and healthcare interventions.MethodsWe will include studies from 2013 to 2023 published in peer-reviewed journals in English or Arabic (with English abstracts) available on PubMed, Embase and CINAHL. Search strategies are developed using MeSH terms and key terms related to our study population (international labor immigrants), context (the GCC countries), and exposure (migrant status; work-related diseases and injuries). The screening process involves two stages: initial review of titles/abstracts and full-text review. Studies meeting eligibility criteria and focusing on our primary outcome (access to healthcare) will be included. Data extraction will cover study characteristics, population demographics, described exposures, outcomes measured, and key findings. Given the expected heterogeneity, narrative synthesis will be primarily used, with meta-analysis as an option.DiscussionBy considering both migrant workers and expatriate professionals, we provide a culturally tailored perspective. Methodological rigor is ensured through the gold standard screening process, where at least two reviewers independently screen the literature at each stage, with a senior reviewer resolving discrepancies. We will identify barriers, facilitators, and inform targeted interventions for policymakers. Our findings will support evidence-based strategies to improve healthcare access for international labor migrants in the GCC countries.Systematic review registrationThis systematic review protocol was registered on the international registry PROSPERO (CRD42024532851) on April 21, 2024.

In this paper the theoretical and methodological aspects of migration processes research, focusing specifically on "labour migration" are examined, theories of migration of population and workforce by domestic and foreign scholars are analyzed. Historical periods of the development of labour migration in Kazakhstan and the main trends of external labour migration in the modern era are discussed. The characteristics, motives, distinctive features, types, and indicators of labour migration are highlighted. Special attention is given to identifying the primary reasons and factors of external labour migration. The directions of migration in Kazakhstan and the main sectors attracting foreign labour are analyzed. External labour migration in Kazakhstan is presented as a result of socio-economic development and implemented migration policies. As a result of the study, it is concluded that Kazakhstan is a recipient country within the post-Soviet space; with its labour market being supplemented by foreign labour and low-skilled labour immigrants primarily from Central Asian countries. A notable feature of the flow of labour migration from Central Asian republics to Kazakhstan is a high proportion of illegally employed among them. At the same time, one of the significant trends in external labour migration is the decrease in the emigration of compatriots alongside a substantial outflow of skilled professionals, in other words "brain drain." It is noted that despite the existence of numerous scientific studies on migration, the aspects of labour migration i0n the Republic of Kazakhstan remains insufficiently presented

ABSTRACT In Istanbul, Turkish scrap metal dealers characterize their work as a negotiation of dual economic moralities, private interest and social obligation, and claim that their labor is righteous and socially productive as a result. In contrast, they often accuse migrant waste pickers of operating under a single economic morality, theft, and assert that waste picking is therefore an immoral and socially harmful form of work. This article analyzes how these accusations form a discourse of labor hierarchy that illuminates scrap dealers’ normative ideas about work, social relations, and belonging. It argues that perceptions regarding the presence or absence of economic moralities in competing forms of work can mediate relations between citizen and migrant workforces. The article demonstrates that accusations about economic moralities are key mechanisms by which scrap dealers draw moral boundaries between themselves and migrant waste pickers. It identifies the social and political conditions in which competing circuits of commerce emerge between these groups. Finally, it concludes that the denial of economic moral complexity in migrant workers is a distinct form of anti-migrant discourse – one that aims to exclude newly arrived migrant workers across multiple scales.

ABSTRACT The article analyzes how migration shapes the circulation of workers and struggles. The aim is to territorialize both the industry and meanings of work and collectivities for workers. In research on migration and the digital economy, the games industry has been underrepresented. The article builds on labour process theory framework and two case studies, with (1) Brazilian migrants working abroad and (2) workers from various parts of the world working in Britain, highlighting both the commonalities and the specificities of the circulation of the workforce and struggles. While the first case points out a migrant workforce dispersed around the world who experience difficulties as migrants while being considered a ‘skilled’ workforce, the second showcases how a country recruits migrants into the games industry and how workers of different nationalities work and organize themselves. Both cases reveal how territorialized the workforce is as well as desires and challenges in organizing.

BackgroundNon-communicable diseases (NCDs) are increasingly prevalent among South Asian migrants, with evidence suggesting that many adopt unhealthy behavioural risk factors (BRFs) in host countries. Despite Sri Lanka’s substantial temporary migrant workforce exceeding 1.5 million, data on BRFs of NCDs among returnee migrant workers remains scarce. This study aims to describe the prevalence of BRFs of NCDs and associated factors among Sri Lankan returnee migrant workers from the Middle East.MethodsThis community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 680 returnee Middle East migrant workers in the Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka. Study participants were selected using a three-stage cluster sampling method based on probability-proportionate-to-size technique. A pretested interviewer-administered questionnaire was utilized for data collection. Prevalences were presented as percentages with 95% confidence intervals. Logistic regression analysis was applied to identify correlates for BRFs.ResultsResponse rate was 94.4% (N = 642). The prevalence of BRFs was as follows: daily tobacco use 14.2% (95% CI: 11.5–17.1), current alcohol use 20.1% (95% CI: 17.0-23.4), inadequate fruit/vegetable intake 89.3% (95% CI: 86.6–91.6), and physical inactivity 31.4% (95% CI: 27.8–35.2). Daily tobacco use was significantly associated with the 35–42 age group (AOR 2.04, 95% CI: 1.16–3.57), being male (AOR 17.04, 95% CI: 7.19–40.39), and having accumulated savings (AOR 2.16, 95% CI: 1.25–3.72). Current alcohol use was associated with being currently employed (AOR 7.18, 95% CI: 2.61–20.95), being a male (AOR 44.51, 95% CI: 12.30-149.15), lower education level (AOR 2.97, 95% CI:1.67–5.79). Insufficient fruit/vegetable consumption was associated with; lower household income (AOR 4.32, 95% CI: 2.12–8.09), and inadequate savings (AOR 2.86, 95% CI: 1.18–6.25). Physical inactivity was correlated with; being female (AOR 5.26, 95% CI: 1.75–9.09), having accumulated savings (AOR 1.71, 95% CI: 1.19–2.92).ConclusionReturnee migrant workers exhibit a high prevalence of BRFs, influenced significantly by demographic, socio-economic, and migration-related factors. Migrant-friendly interventions promoting healthcare access, voluntary NCD screenings, and health-literacy assistance are recommended throughout the migration process, alongside further research.

The adoption of information and communication technology (ICT) by rural-urban migrants is reshaping job-search mobility, significantly shaping city-level workforce geographical diversity. This study provides compelling evidence of ICT's impact by examining China's cities. We introduce the rural-urban migrant workforce Geographical Diversity Index (GDI), a metric that captures the mobility patterns of 20 million migrant workers across Chinese cities from Q1 2019 to Q4 2023. This study highlights how ICT usage shapes migration dynamics and connectivity across geographic spaces, with implications for labor mobility and urban inclusivity. Using panel vector autoregression models, we establish a causal relationship between ICT usage and GDI, revealing heterogeneous impacts: large cities and male workers benefit more from ICT usage than small cities and female workers. While ICT-driven diversity enhances labor productivity, it also increases migrant workers' job-hunting travel distances, contributing to higher carbon emissions. These findings underscore the dual role of ICT as a facilitator of inclusivity and a source of sustainability challenges, offering critical insights for policymakers aiming to leverage digital tools for equitable and sustainable urban development.

Migrant inclusion is a crucial factor in job retention and organizational success. Understanding inclusion struggles enables the hospitality and tourism (H&T) sector to develop interventions to retain migrant workers and enhance organizational integrity. Despite the growing research on the migrant workforce, research on migrant inclusion struggles is limited. This study examines migrant workers’ inclusion struggles at the workplace and the consequences of such struggles on their psychological well-being, (dis)identification, and job performance. It surveys 440 international migrants working in hospitality and tourism (H&T) organizations of a migrant-dependent Chinese Special Administrative Region, Macau, to examine the optimal distinctiveness theory. Overall, it was revealed that the migrants struggle with inclusion but mostly with uniqueness. Also, workplace inclusion has significant consequences on psychological well-being, (dis)identification, and job performance. Inclusiveness’s ability to repress negative workplace attitudes among migrant workers is uncovered. Further measurement invariance tests suggest significant differences among migrant worker sub-groups along demographics with newcomers being the most sensitive to inclusion. We, uniquely, propose policy interventions for addressing migrant inclusion struggles that contribute to achieving inclusivity and decent work (SDG 8.8) by pursuing optimal migrant distinctiveness (OMD).

Migrant workers constitute a significant portion of China's workforce, and their health directly affects labor supply and economic stability. Health vulnerability plays a crucial role in shaping the well-being of migrant workers, yet its determinants, particularly the impact of temperature change, remain underexplored. This study, based on the socio-ecological model, investigates how temperature variations influence the health vulnerability of migrant workers in China. Using data from 2020, this study quantifies health vulnerability and examines the impact of temperature fluctuations across different seasons. Robustness checks, including dependent variable substitutions and model modifications, ensure the reliability of the findings. Furthermore, a mechanism analysis is conducted to explore the underlying pathways through which temperature change affects health vulnerability. The findings reveal that rising temperatures in spring, summer, and winter significantly exacerbate the health vulnerability of migrant workers, while increasing autumn temperatures mitigate it. Mechanism analysis identifies heightened psychological burden as a key channel through which temperature change worsens health vulnerability. Additionally, generational differences emerge: older migrant workers are more adversely affected by elevated spring temperatures, whereas younger workers exhibit greater sensitivity to rising summer temperatures. These results underscore the necessity of targeted health interventions and adaptive labor protection policies. By highlighting the seasonal and generational disparities in the effects of temperature change, this study offers theoretical and empirical support for enhancing the resilience of migrant workers to climate variations. The findings provide valuable insights for policymakers in designing strategies to safeguard the health and stability of the migrant workforce.

ABSTRACTOver the past 2 decades, multinational enterprises (MNEs) have significantly increased their reliance on migrant workers in lower‐skilled jobs within global supply chains (GSCs)—a phenomenon largely overlooked in global mobility scholarship. In this provocation paper, we aim to broaden the scope of traditional debates in this field by introducing the concept of human supply chains, originally coined by labor‐law scholar Jennifer Gordon (2017). We adapt and extend this concept to focus on MNEs as research targets, defining it through the policies and/or practices aimed at transnational labor recruitment, management, and retention applied to migrant workforces in their GSCs. We advocate for the need to engage with this critical topic in global mobility research and outline key pathways for future inquiry.

Purpose Amidst dynamic global changes, migrant workforce dynamics have become complex due to voluntary and forced migrations, coupled with talent competition. Paradoxically, many migrants experience deskilling and brain waste in host countries. To optimize migrant skills for enhanced job performance in fluctuating organizational and environmental contexts, it is vital to overcome this challenge. This study aims to verify the employees’ dynamic capabilities (EDC) based job performance model among migrants, exploring how the moderating effect of a meaning of life influences the relationship between EDC and job performance, considering job-related attitudes. Design/methodology/approach We conducted empirical research based on a survey of 453 Ukrainian migrants currently residing in Poland. Findings The results indicate that EDC influences job performance through person-job fit, work motivation, and job satisfaction. Particularly, migrants with a positive meaning of life show stronger relationships between EDC and job performance. Originality/value The article’s originality lies in exploring the concept of EDC within the context of migrant workers, bridging a gap in understanding how these capabilities impact job performance, particularly regarding brain waste and deskilling. The study delves into how EDC could mitigate the mismatch between migrant workers’ qualifications and job placements, thereby enriching international human resources management strategies to foster inclusive workplaces and enhance migrant workforce success.

The research analyzes violations of human rights against immigrant workers at the 2022 Qatar World Cup. After receiving the privilege of hosting the 2022 World Cup, Qatar was faced with the problem of migrant workers, which has become a concern of the world community. Migrant workers who build infrastructure face discriminatory and exploitative treatment, and hundreds of migrant workers are found working on infrastructure development for the 2022 World Cup, where workers are affected by human rights violations by the companies where they work. The problem is due to the existence of the Kafala system, which is considered to be the root cause of all aspects of the migrant workforce in infrastructure development in Qatar through 2022. The research method used is normative legal research with a case approach. The results of the study show that the sponsorship kafala system implemented by Qatar only facilitates the occurrence of modern slavery through the exploitation of the rights of migrant workers. Therefore, the research examines Qatar's actions on human rights violations and the International Labour Organization (ILO) accountability in efforts to influence policies related to migrant workers in Qatar.

Abstract Labour migration has both social and economic drivers that channel workers into jobs that are less desirable to citizens of the receiving countries. Immigrant workers find jobs through contacts from their home countries, including temporary staffing companies. These workers tend to co-locate in segregated communities and coalesce in jobs that entail hard work, low wages, and limited social benefits. As such, labour migration adds a dimension to the structural and social determinants of health (SDOH) that can broaden our understanding of health inequities, and that can point us toward policies and practices to enhance the health and wellbeing of migrant workforces. However, to generate evidence, align interventions with workers’ needs and priorities, and move evidence to action, it is crucial to engage communities. This presentation describes a community-university research partnership that co-investigates the relationship between work and health as experienced at the community level in two high-economic-hardship neighbourhoods in Chicago, Illinois/USA. The academic and practice partners co-developed and tested a conceptual model of the interrelations among migration, work and health, conducted an inventory of local employers, and executed a street-level survey of 497 workers in these two communities. The research findings helped enhance existing models of the structural/social determinants of health and of work precarity, thus informing methodological approaches to measure work precarity, labour exploitation, and their health effects. The community-based participatory research further led to several action-research projects that are ongoing. This presentation will describe the development of the community-university research partnership and its work, the subsequent enhancements made to the worker precarity and SDOH models, and preliminary findings of the partnership’s current action-research projects.

ABSTRACT In India, the COVID-19 pandemic called attention to the plight of the informal migrant workforce who travelled back to their villages on foot intending to sustain themselves and survive. Based on the responses of 374 migrants originally from West Bengal migrating to other regions in India and abroad, this paper explores how the COVID-19 pandemic shaped migrants’ employment conditions. Using non-parametric tests, i.e. the Kruskal–Wallis, Wilcoxon, effect size, etc., the study compares migrants’ access to work before the initiation of lockdown, during the lockdown and post-lockdown relaxation. Further, by applying logistic regression analysis, the study examines the factors influencing their preference to seek employment in regions other than their home states. The results indicate that the migrants experienced shortfalls during times of crisis. There were differences in their access to the previous jobs during and after the upliftment of the lockdown measures. Though there was uncertainty in accessing the previous jobs and fear of facing similar situations in the future, the analysis suggests that the migrants still preferred to move to other states in future.

IntroductionMigration of the health workforce from low- and middle-income countries (LMCIs) is increasingly becoming a phenomenon of interest within migration governance systems. The COVID-19 pandemic aggravated health workforce shortages that...

BackgroundPhuket Province is a major tourist destination with a migrant workforce accounting for 10% of its population. Despite governmental efforts to adjust health insurance policies, migrants face healthcare access challenges. This study examines the current healthcare access situation and factors associated with unmet needs among migrants in Phuket Province.MethodsWe used a cross-sectional mixed-methods approach, recruiting participants through snowball sampling from the Migrant Health Volunteer Network. Quantitative data were gathered using self-administered questionnaires, with unmet need defined as desired outpatient or recommended inpatient services not received at government hospitals. Multivariable logistic regression identified unmet need predictors, and we assessed the mediating effect of health insurance status. Qualitative data from three focus groups on healthcare access provided context and enriched the quantitative findings.ResultsThis study includes 296 migrants mainly from Myanmar. The overall unmet need prevalence was 14.86%, mainly attributed to having undocumented status (34.09%), affordability issues (20.45%), and language barriers (18.18%). Working in the fishery industry significantly increased unmet needs risk (aOR 2.68, 95% CI 1.08–6.62). Undocumented status contributed a marginal total effect of 4.86 (95% CI 1.62–14.54), with a natural indirect effect through uninsured status of only 1.16 (95% CI 0.88–1.52). Focus group participants used various medical resources, with insured individuals preferring hospital care, but faced obstacles due to undocumented status and language barriers.ConclusionValid legal documents, including work permits and visas, are crucial for healthcare access. Attention to fishery industry practices is needed. We recommend stakeholder discussions to streamline the process of obtaining and maintaining these documents for migrant workers. These improvements could enhance health insurance acquisition and ultimately improve healthcare affordability for this population. These insights could be applied to migrant workers in other urban and suburban area of Thailand regarding access to government healthcare facilities.