Almost one in four employees in Europe is a migrant

2024-12-17 08:41:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Almost one in four employees in Europe is currently a migrant. The main factor for the lack of labor in European countries is the aging of the population.

According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), migrants play an increasingly important role in the labor market in European countries. For the economy and development, they are "indispensable", it is stated in the report (16.12.2024) of the ILO. Almost one in four employees in Europe is currently a migrant. Especially in high-income countries, migrants are playing an increasingly important role. In Northern, Southern and Western Europe, the quota of migrant workers between 2013 and 2022 has increased from 22.5 percent to 23.3 percent. Migrants are considered all people who work in another country and not in their homeland. Labor migrants are necessary to cope with the lack of labor around the world and to contribute to economic development, said the director. ILO General Gilbert F. Houngbo.

The ILO in this group includes both people in employment and migrants, who work without regular documentation in the country where they migrated. In the global comparison, the quota of migrants in relation to the population in employment relationships in Europe as well as in North America and in the Arab states is quite high.

High employment in the service sector

These regions, on the one hand, are attractive to migrants for the reason that they have high incomes and standards, on the other hand, the demand for workers is quite large. The main factor for the lack of labor in these countries is the aging of the population. Migrants occupy jobs when employees retire, and at the same time, the need for employees in the care sector for the elderly increases. This is also reflected in the figures: Three quarters of people who have been employed as migrants in Europe have been employed in the service sector. While the quota of the local population in this sector is almost half of the employed.

Reasons for the high unemployment rate

Worldwide, the quota of migrants in relation to the labor force in 2022 was 4.7 percent. The total number of migrants worldwide according to the ILO is about 284.5 million. About 255.7 million of them were over 15 years old, i.e. of working age. 167.7 million people were engaged in working life - 30 million more than in 2013. The unemployment rate among migrants at 7.2 percent is slightly higher than among the local population (5.2 percent). According to the data of the UN Organization ILO, the reasons, among others, are language difficulties, as well as the lack of recognition of diplomas or even discrimination./ DW