Free Movement of Workers after the EU Enlargement

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Table of Contents

Introduction
The Enlargement of EU
Transitional Measures in the Free Movement of Workers
Obstacles to Free Movement of Workers
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

Ancient people always moved from one place to another and made the current emigration map of the world. However, compared with the ancient time, the term emigration has not changed a lot because people’s aims of emigration are still the same: to seek for job opportunities, to find a better job, to enroll in a better learning institution among other reasons.

Currently, the geopolitics of the world is changed and states are trying to form unions due to the benefits which come with forming such unions. For example, the European Union (EU) might be the best example of these kinds of unions. The European Union has its own rules and regulations which govern the relationship and interaction of the member states.

The union has many regulations with one of the main regulations being free movement within the union by citizens belonging to nations of the union. It is not only a right that a citizen of a union member state can travel, but also he/she can move, stay and find a job within the EU.

However, from time to time there have been rising some controversial issues related to the free movement of union member citizens within the EU. The new entrant states do not have the same ‘freedom’ and ‘right’ as the 15 main countries which have played a huge role in the EU formation.

It is expected that with time the new members in the union will be allowed to enjoy all the privileges that are enjoyed by the old members. Just like any flexible market, labor mobility is a key factor in production. Free labor movement will ensure that the changing conditions of labor demand are well countered; therefore, free movement of labor is considered a cornerstone of the European Union developement.

The Enlargement of EU

The major enlargement of the EU was witnessed in the year 2004 when ten countries became members. These countries were majorly from the Eastern and Central Europe safe for Mediterranean countries like Cypress and Malta. There was a potential concern over the flow of workers within the EU.

The free movement of workers is a fundamental feature of the EU’s internal market and is defined in the treaty of the European Community. The treaty states that every individual has the right to take up employment and to respond to job offers within the EU. The principal of free movement of people was not ratified by several leaders and countries but this free movement of workers has been ratified by Sweden, UK and Ireland (Hofman 3).

In the years 2004 and 2007, the enlargement of the EU was unprecedented in certain aspects of the economy and policy. There is a lot of evidence that this enlargement had a lot of impacts on the flow of migrants from the new states to the older states. Despite the existence of restrictions, the flow of migrants could not be stopped and only the immigrant composition could be controlled. The free movement of people, goods, services and capital is captured in article 39 to 42 in the charter of the EU.

The flow of immigrant was largely due to the prospects of labor market. The free movement of workers forms a particular component of the EU. The four freedoms that are sanctioned by the charter of the European Community are the primary factors motivating free movement of labor. These four freedoms are the free movement of goods, services, workers and capital. The charter also provides for exceptions regarding to the exercise of these freedoms and they may therefore be restricted in particular circumstances (Metcalf 8).

Leaving ones country, demands courage and determination and leaving ones family and environment that one is acquainted with is not an easy task. The host country does not guarantee opportunities for the migrant workers. The procedure to labor force or to the labor market of the host countries is a complicated one.

Migrant workers from the new states are not entitled to any income for their upkeep and other countries have a tight rules and procedures due to the fear of migrant workers burdening their finance and it is only Sweden that grants this privilege (Traser 10). Understanding the causes and the effects of migration of labor force and their effect on the labor policies of the enlarged EU is a paramount matter. After the expansion of the union, a couple of countries made their labor market accessible to all the members.

Transitional Measures in the Free Movement of Workers

Transitional measures are understood to mean the restrictions that govern free movement of workers and the rights governing them. The restrictions limit the use of treaties by the workers and allow them to take up employment everywhere within the territory of the European Union. The restrictions slapped on workers vary according to the sector and the type of the work. These restrictions are based on quota arrangements, work permits which are only given when the nationals can not fill the available vacancy.

The free movement of workers is a temporary provision which particularly apply to a new state. Transitional clauses do not apply to Malta and Cyprus due to their geographical size and they can take up positions in the EU without any restrictions.

Nationals of the member states who were already working in any EU states before the enlargement were automatically enlisted into the labor market of that particular country for one year or more. This privilege did not however extend to the ability to accessing the labor market of other countries. There are four regimes that are applied by the enlarged EU body, these are:

First is a restrictive immigration regime in countries like Belgium, Finland, Spain, Germany, Greece, France and Luxembourg where workers from the new member states are accorded similar treatment like non-EEA citizens and they are required to apply for a new world permit and these permits are only issued on condition that the vacancy cannot be filled by a native.

There is also a similar restrictive regime which allow for quota system for workers from the new states; this quota system is applied by countries like the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Austria. Consequently, there are those countries that allow for general access to their labor market but only with minimal or limited welfare benefits.

In these countries, unemployment can constitute grounds for ones permit to be revoked. These countries are particularly Ireland and United Kingdom. Sweden allow for complete application of rules of free movement of workers (Traser 24).

Furthermore, despite this freedom of movement, there still exist other challenges like legal and administrative costs, unfamiliarity with other European Union members’ languages, limited flexibility of pension rights and inefficient housing market (Heinz and Ward 7).

Currently, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France and Italy are the only six countries that maintain their work permit or visa for those nationals who would wish to take up employment. All the EU member states attach stringent conditions to their welfare benefits except Sweden. Germany and Austria were given the freedom to impose more limitations on provision of services for employment of particular sectors for a transition period of seven years.

This was motivated by the fact that these two countries were considered to be the main receivers of the eastern migrations. Access to welfare system in the UK and in the Ireland is based on the length of ones residence and the nature of employment. Sweden has opted to put all the European community rules into play.

After the enlargement, there was the adoption of transitional arrangements which was motivated by the need to control huge numbers of people moving from the new member states to the old member states.

The restrictions that govern this free movement of labor is largely motivated by the fear by the existing EU members which largely fear that the joining of Eastern and Central Europe states which are large in geography and population into the Union will likely lead to heightened competition with the members of the western European countries through the lower salaries that have been offered; it is the fear of the influx of cheap labor into the market.

This migration of labor is largely due to the regional disparities in prosperity of the EU countries. These disparities have been widely witnessed in the level of income, the cost of living, rates of unemployment and the generosity of the welfare system of some states. There is also an emerging theory on human capital model which is used to explain this movement of labor force within the EU. These factors are age, number of educated nationals and the cost of moving.

Labor migrations are complex and multifaceted; it has a lot of effects on the supply of labor and human capital in the destination markets. Migration can affect the wage system and employment of the natives which will translate to its effect on economic inequality (Kahanec and Zimmerman 16).

Obstacles to Free Movement of Workers

Challenging situations: these may arise due to insufficiency of funds and deteriorated living conditions. Inability to find a well paying job may lead to criminal cases like drug and human trafficking. Lack of sufficient information also impedes free movement of labor.

Practical issues: there has been confusion on the application of pre-accession work permit by the nationals of new member states. In this regard there is always confusion on the rights and conditions governing entry and residence. This has rose due to the situation where a work permit is confused with entry visa that does not apply to any EU citizen.

The procedure involved in labor market is always a tedious one. The steps that are involved are very many; first the migrant worker has to find an employer who is wiling to secure employment and he/she must also submit his/her request to the National agency for Labor in the host country.

The worker then must be certified as competent and experienced by the Local Labor Division whose responsibility is to ascertain the professional and experience of the worker. This process might be characterized by delays in the granting of entry permit (Traser 26).

The movement also comes with psychological and social costs; this is because such a movement will lead to an individual severing contacts with his/her families and relatives and his/her social contacts; it is assumed that social network media will help to unite workers and their family members and friends at home.

It has been pointed out that “institutional variation and other important factors, such as geographic, linguistic or cultural distances” (Kahanec and Zimmerman 9) have had huge “heterogeneous effects on migration flows across Europe” (Kahanec and Zimmerman 9).

The movement of workers across the union has confronted the union with a wave of challenges which include: “an aging population, global competitiveness and growth, and the sustainability of social security systems” (Kahanec and Zimmerman 9). In most cases, it has been observed that it is the young people who are much involved in the migration from one state to another to take up jobs.

Conclusion

Labor mobility is central to the EU charter just like the economics of labor mobility. The free movement of labor is motivated by several factors, generally personal and geographical. The unprecedented enlargement of the EU in 2004 enhanced this phenomenon of free movement of workers.

Workers themselves have their own reasons as to why they wish to move to other EU states. The free movement of workers is governed by various regulations or restrictions which vary from one country to another. Labor mobility being an economic matter is confronted by many challenges ranging from procedures involved in the mobility to uncertainty in the work environment that is available in the host country.

Since all countries are independent, there exist variations in the system of education and labor structure which can be an impediment to the free movement of labor. It can be said that the union is moving in the direction towards becoming a solid union. More need to be done especially in ensuring that all the union members adopt policies which favor cooperation and unity.

Works Cited

Heinz, Ferdinand and Ward, Warmedinker. Cross-border labor mobility within an enlarged EU. Occassional Paper Peries, 2006. Web.

Hofman, Michael. Assessing East-west Labour Migration After EU-enlargement. New York: GRIN Verlag, 2007. Print.

Kahanec, Martin and Zimmerman, Klaus. Migration in an enlarged EU: A challenging solution? Economic papers, 2009. Web.

Metcalf, Katrin. Free movement of workers and the EU enlargement: fundamental freedoms with exceptions. SNEE, n.d. Web.

Traser, Julianna. Report on the free movement of workers in EU: who is afraid of EU enlargement? European Citizen Action Services, 2005. Web.

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