Brussels, 24/11/2008 (Agence Europe) - On 13 November, the Dublin-based European Foundation for Improving Living and Working (Eurofound) published a resource pack entitled “East, west, home is best? Migration in Europe”. This pack examines migration patterns and highlights the associated opportunities and challenges. It contains two reports, a press release reveals:
1. “Mobility in Europe”: 53% of European citizens put “freedom of travel and work in the EU” first, when asked what the EU represents to them, well ahead of the introduction of the euro and safeguarding peace. However, in reality, only a small number of Europeans have actually moved to another member state. 49% think that mobility is a good thing for an individual while 50% think there are advantages for the economy. Yet only 4% of workers have actually seized the opportunity and moved to another country in the EU. Fear of losing contact with family and friends was cited by 44% of EU citizens as a risk in 2005. 17% of those who had actually moved did report deterioration in their contact with family and friends. The challenge of having to learn a new language is also often quoted as a disincentive to cross-country mobility. Only 31% of the employed EU population said they would be ready to move even if faced with unemployment in the future.
2. “Social and Economic Integration of Migrants in Cities”, the second output from the European Network of Cities for Local Integration Policy for Migrants (CLIP) project: This report looks at equality and diversity policies in city administrations in relation to employment as well as service provision for migrants. It documents numerous examples of good practice showing how European cities are striving to ensure greater equality in their employment practices. It also identifies key challenges for city administrations in relation to migrants, such as the lack of information and knowledge regarding employment levels and working conditions of migrants; the under-representation of migrants in local authority employment in comparison to local labour market levels; and the under-representation of migrants in middle and higher management in public authorities.
The new resource pack can be found online at http: //http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/ resourcepacks/migration/htm (G.B./transl.rt)