Pan-European Conference – Work: a Tool for Inclusion or a reason for Exclusion ?

Experts Meeting 6 November 2012

Robert Suban & Dr David Zammit

IOM Project funded by European Integration Fund

Presentation Outline

• Objectives of Study• Malta’s Context• Sources of Discrimination: Access to work• Sources of Discrimination: Workplace • Sources of Discrimination: Other• Comments on the Assessment Questionnaires• Other points to consider• Dr Zammit’s related work

Objectives of Study (1)

• Support Maltese stakeholders • Sharing knowledge and experience on TCN

integration policies and best practices developed and implemented in other EU countries

• Assess which practices can be implemented locally and how

• Maltese input will focus on combating discrimination in employment including access to work and workplace discrimination

Objectives of Study (2)

• Study will try to answer following questions:• Which policies and practices are effective in fighting against

recruitment and workplace discrimination of TCNs • How are employers being prepared to manage a multicultural

workforce ? • What is being done to promote access to information for TCNs

and employers alike ?• Are there any networks that TCNs could access to get any help ?• What is being done in the area of recognition of qualifications ?• What support is provided to SMEs in all activities above-

mentioned ?

Malta’s Context (1)

• Since the beginning of the century, Malta’s migration policy has been dominated by the arrival of irregular migrants and its repeated calls for “burden sharing”

• In this context, no real initiatives have been taken to promote integration of TCN migrants

• Integration policies could be viewed as contradictory thus undermining strength of calls for “burden sharing”

Malta’s Context (2)

• What type of migration do we have ?• Low-skilled jobs (usually taken up irregular

migrants)• High-skilled jobs related to certain specific

industries (financial services, i-gaming, ICT, pharmaceutical industry, aircraft maintenance, etc.) (taken up by EU or TCNs)

• Seasonal workers for the tourism sector (taken up by irregular migrants and EU)

Malta’s Context (3)Number of Enterprises in Malta

Type of Enterprise Number Share Malta (%) Share EU 27 (%)

Micro 33772 95.8 92.1

Small 1200 3.4 6.6

Medium-sized 246 0.7 1.1

SMEs 35218 99.9 99.8

Large 48 0.1 0.2

Total 35266 100 100

Source: European Commission 2012

Maltese SMEs employ an average of 2.5 persons (EU average 4.3).Malta is the only country in the EU where the share of micro enterprises (entities which employ less than 10 employees) exceeds the EU average.

The Maltese Chamber of SMEs regularly protests on the excessive levels of bureaucracythat SMES have to contend with.

Malta’s Context (4)

• As an EU member state, Malta has to abide by the principle of Community preference:

• Pecking order of migrants vis-a-vis labour market access:• EU, EEA, Swiss• Refugees• Temporary Humanitarian Protection• Asylum Seekers• TCNs who are married/partners of Maltese/EU• TCNs (last resort when vacancies cannot be filled by

anyone in categories above)

Malta’s Context (5)

Source: ETCEU,EEA, Swiss migrants and Refugees, THPs, and Asylum

seekers have increased at the expense of TCNsTCNs originate from a large number of countries

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009EU,EEA, Swiss 1254 1371 2837 3384 4134 3725

Refugees, THPs, Asylum Seekers

66 446 801 973 1553 1213

TCNs 1733 1899 3202 2873 3428 2495Total 3053 3716 6840 7230 9115 7433

Malta’s Context (6)

Source: NSOMigrant population has been steadily increasing

since accession but total migrant population is still less than 5% of total population

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Migrant Population 11999 12446 13877 15460 18137

Maltese Population 390669 392560 393933 394830 395472

% of migrants 2.98 3.073 3.403 3.768 4.385

Malta’s Context (7)

Source: Refugee Commissioner

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

1686 502 1388 1822 1780 1702 2775 1475

Irregular entry in Malta 2002-2009

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Low-skilled 904 1662 2607 2531 2901 1426

Skilled 796 1503 3076 3320 4034 2885

Highly Skilled 33 221 579 901 1528 2640

Open Permit 0 330 578 478 652 482

Holders of Work Permits by skill level

Source: ETC

Sources of Discrimination: Access to Work Work Permit Application EU, EEA, Swiss, REF, THP, AS TCNs

Subject to police clearance No Yes

Subject to labour market test No Yes

Work permit fee Lower Higher

Can have access to self-employment Yes No

Automatic renewal Yes No

Limited number of renewals No Yes

Can submit application while in Malta Yes Not always

Amount of documentation to be provided

Lower Higher

Time to process application Automatic to a few days No time-limit

Level of uncertainty about outcome Non-existent High

Access to vacancies Yes (EURES portal) Limited

Access to work for partners Yes Subject to LMT

Sources of Discrimination: Workplace EU, EEA, Swiss, REF, THP, AS TCNs

Possibility to change employer Yes Extremely limited

Possibility to change job description Yes No

Eligible to unemployment benefits Yes No

Eligible to pension Yes Very limited

Ability to look for employment if becomes unemployed

Yes (limited to six months) No

Conditions of work Limited difference Willing to accept worse conditions

Tendency to be overqualified Limited More frequent

Wages Limited difference More frequent

Access to redress In theory no difference but more difficult to access for TCNs

Sources of Discrimination: Other EU, EEA, Swiss, REF, THP, AS TCNs

Recognition of qualifications

Automatic for certain professions Can be lengthy and difficult

Problems related to opening of bank account

Limited Yes in certain cases

Utilities rates Higher rates than Maltese (subject to residency test)

Family reunification Yes Subject to conditions

Access to schooling for children

Yes Yes

University Fees and access to stipends

No difference in fees and access to stipend subject to 5 years plus residency

Difference in fees and no access to stipend unless LTR status

Access to Long-term resident status (LTR)

N/A Virtually impossible to get

Some Comments on the Assessment Questionnaires

• Feedback principally from NGOs• Are Labour related laws being enforced ?• What are the penalties if laws are not adhered to ?• Need for greater access to information about rights and obligations for

both employees and employers (very important given that most are SMES)• Need to develop policies to facilitate diversity and intercultural training

and awareness for employers/employees at workplace • Need to review recruitment processes on a regular basis to remove any

possible direct or indirect discrimination• More information is needed on the redress system• Possibility of mobility of TCNs especially when there is a labour related

breach/abuse• Need to improve system for providing feedback to policy makers on areas

of discrimination

Other Points to consider (1)

• Do our TCNs really want to integrate ?• For highly skilled probably not given that our

labour market is too small to offer enough opportunities

• Problem of partner/spouse possibility of working• Some of the tax advantages only apply for a

limited period (New high net worth scheme)• Other EU countries are offering better conditions

than Malta in the long-term

Other Points to consider (2)

• Do the Maltese Authorities really want to integrate TCNs ?• They are making an effort at attracting highly skilled

workers whether EU or not• But in the case of TCNs, policies are so restrictive as to

make it virtually impossible to get LTR status• For example: the tax advantages of the new high net worth

scheme only apply for a limited period (less than 5 years)• The Authorities have failed to recognize that Malta will

need migrants and that in order to overcome certain disadvantages it needs to become more attractive compared to other EU countries

Report Prepared for IOM in context of Consultative Assessment on the Integration of Third Country

Nationals

• Coordinated by David Zammit • Concluded in September 2012• Used anthropological approach• Focus on semi-structured interviews with

stakeholders/third country nationals• Highlighted the way informal integration “policies” for

TCNs are developed in the absence of a national policy• Looked at the experiences of TCNs in Malta in relation

to work/ accommodation/law/culture/living in general

Main finding: importance of legal status

• Third Country nationals experience the administrative rules and processes through which their legal status is negotiated and defined as obscure, arbitrary, complex and discretionary. This reflects real features of the system, which appears initially to be transparently simple but actually has various inbuilt features which are can be employed to restrict access to the benefits of citizenship and long term status to a deserving few. At the same time, these same features often seem to frame their experience of Maltese society, blending seamlessly with hostile and quasi-racist attitudes of rejection expressed by the grass-roots. Thus, the ethnic background of the TCN becomes less important than the kind of residence permit he/she has and the administrative apparatus through which Migration law is implemented becomes a metaphor for his/her experience of Maltese society as a whole.

In relation to work:• An ethnic division of labour prevails (eg Chinese caterers/

Filippino carers / Libyans working for Libyan controlled companies based in Malta/ Russians working in hospitality sector or self employed).

• This tends to reflect residence status (example: Chinese tend to be given annual renewable residence permits and therefore cannot easily aspire to perform jobs which require specialised long term training / Russians are often spouses of Maltese nationals and therefore can work without requesting an employment license: so have more career options).

• Jobs in IT sector cut across divisions of nationality/ethnicity

Perceptions of Discrimination in Work Based on Residence Status:

• Serbian who works as a software engineer for an IT company based in Malta but who has an annually renewable residence permit when asked if he feels discriminated against in his job:

• “In my job no; except for what I said that if I would change a job or maybe, maybe it’s another issue that with my work permit which always needed visa to go anywhere. So maybe my manager will send me somewhere to...like some fair or some seminar or anything. But I have problems with visa. So basically that thing. I cannot develop personally even in my job and its a huge problem for them. So I’m stuck there. And it’s a huge huge problem, you know. And only because of the papers, because of the passport. Nothing else.”

Croatian works as a tourist guide:

• “When I was applying for my work permit I had problems because ETC were saying: ‘okay have you received applications from other EU nationals?’ Okay so why give first preference to others from EU if you have a person who has been living here (in Malta) for so long (fifteen years) and they have the qualifications that they need. Why can’t that person be given the opportunity to have a work permit? Why must you look for somebody from EU? And it’s always like that.”

Discrimination alleged:• In granting residence status/employment license

(requirements change according to nationality/kind of job applied for)

• Delays in processing applications for residence status/employment license for certain groups/kinds of jobs: problem of unkown “stakeholders” who must be consulted

• Kind of status granted also perceived to vary according to nationality: eg Residence permit renewed for 6 months instead of 1 year

• A tendency to interrupt annual renewals reported in relation to certain nationalities meaning they cannot qualify for long-term residence status

Chinese TCN complaining that unlike other nationalities her employment license / residence permit was only

renewed for 6 months:

• “For the students of Korean or Japanese to give the right paper as well… but, if they want to get a visa, it’s very easy for them. But we are Chinese… very difficult.”

Discrimination in Workplace and general social life seen as a function of TCN’s ethnic background &

their lack of secure residence / employment status

• A Philippine TCN observed that in her work as a carer in a Church home other carers who were less qualified than her as they did not have qualifications in nursing often accused her of taking their bread from them as a migrant working in Malta. Moreover the cleaner felt that she could order her around since she was Asian.

Discrimination in Social life in General

• “I go there and I want to ask the doctor how much I have to pay and the doctor say: okay…come to my office, I tell you how much you need to pay. And then they make me the appointment. I wait for two weeks and then I come to the office. And the doctor only talk to me for two minutes and they give me the price €4,000 for the plastic surgery and then I came out and the Reception charged me €50 and I said. Even the Reception was very surprised. I came out so quick. And the Reception was: oh you finished! And I said: yes I finished. The doctor only asked me which kind of surgery and then he told me to speak to you. And then the Reception said: you want to continue the surgery? And I said: no because it’s too expensive. And the Reception said: okay that’s €50. That’s very…”

Problem of Lack of Recognition of Qualifications

• Complex procedure as often depends on local stakeholders, such as professional associations

• Plagued with delays / Exams not held / Process is informal and discretionary

• Restrictive, exclusionary attitude

TCN Responses to lack of Recognition:

• (1) Temporary withdrawal from the labour market in order to focus on family responsibilities.

• (2) Accepting a different kind of employment than the one for which they had qualified, generally with a lower status and pay.

• (3) Opening their own business: effectively working as self-employed and using their Maltese/EEA spouse or partner to help them access bank loans and register their businesses.

• (4) Finding work with a foreign employer.

Or Reinventing One’s Occupation

• Another strategy, which deserves particular attention because it highlights the adaptable and entrepreneurial attitude of some of the TCNs, involves branching out into new lines of work and using the educational opportunities available in Malta to train oneself for this purpose. Thus a Turkish English language student transformed himself into an IT industry worker and found a good job in e-gaming after following an IT course at the University of Malta.

Complicated Job Trajectories

• “In Serbia I change many jobs. I start like hairdresser in room yeah. After that I work like the barman you know. After like waiter. After like pizza meister. How do you say pizza meister? Pizzaiolo. After like driver, truck driver, you know. After like security, door-keeper in private television, you know. After I go in tourism, like you know. I work in hotel like receptionist.”

Official Understanding of Integration: Kinship Based & Assimilatory

• Enacted in the way laws are interpreted and applied as also in bureaucratic procedures

• Influences TCN’s who generally feel excluded and discriminated against even if they have been living and working in Malta for more than a decade

• Need for a Maltese Patron (Employer), Spouse or Friend: “if you go by yourself they don’t take you seriously very much in Malta”

• Being contested at grass-roots by a more multi-cultural and formal understanding of integration