Immigrants’ integration in the Portuguese Labour Market

1. Developing a methodological framework for developing Local and Regional Plans for Social Inclusion Immigrants’ integration in the Portuguese Labour Market catarina.oliveira@acime.gov.ptwww.acime.gov.pt

2. Summary • Context: immigration flows to Portugal • Immigrants in the Portuguese Labour Market • Characterizing immigrants vulnerability • Measures that intend to meet the needs of immigrants’ vulnerability in the Portuguese labour market

3. Immigration to Portugal is a recent and in progress phenomena… • Mass immigration to Portugal only dates back to the mid-1970s:between 1960 and 1981 it took place a demographic change in which Portugal from a sending country become a host nation. Between those two decades, the native population grow 12% as the foreigners with legal residence grow 313% • Historical links between Portugal and the former colonies conditioned the earlier immigration flows:Until the end of the 1990s, Africans constituted the major foreign group, followed by EU Europeans and Americans. • As Portugal entered the European Economic Community in 1986, a new incentive to immigration was created:Asian and South American immigrants started to have rates of growth higher than the Africans • Later on, in the end of the 1990s, a significant new immigration flows came from Eastern European countries (around 100 thousand – nearly 65 thousand Ukrainians): This major shift increased the complexity of contemporary migration flows to Portugal and created new challenges in the control of borders.

4. Foreigners with legal residence in Portugal

5. If until the 1990s immigrants were essentially concentrated in the metropolitan areas of Lisbon, Setubal, Faro and Porto; the new flows dispersed along the country (even into rural areas)

6. Foreigners with legal residence in Lisbon and Faro, 2004

7. Immigrants in the Portuguese Labour Market: paths of vulnerability? The presence of immigrants in the Portuguese labour market reflects the demand and transformations of the Economy in the past decades: • Immigrants have been substituting Portuguese workers in manual and unqualified activities (e.g. construction and cleaning sectors); • Immigrants have been fundamental to respond to the lack of highly skilled workers (e.g. doctors, dentists, engineers, finance experts, nurses) • Immigrant entrepreneurship have been stimulating economic growth in local markets (revitalizing abandoned markets and streets, offering new services and products, opening new commercial links with different countries) Immigrants are today a compulsory need to the Portuguese Labour Market

8. Foreigner and Portuguese population by economic sector (2001)

9. Although immigrants become essential to the Portuguese labour market, some of them are quite vulnerable to: • Unemployment • Precarious contracts • Labour accidents Furthermore there are certain contradictions in the Portuguese labour market: • Although there are a lack of highly skilled workers, there are qualified immigrants working in manual activities (e.g. engineers, nurses and doctors working as servants in construction or in the cleaning sector).

10. Until the 1980s the immigration to Portugal responds especially to the demand of certain economic sectors (e.g. building and construction): most of the immigrants were unskilled African workers who followed along paths blazed in the 1960s. It is only in mid-1980s that it is observed the diversification of immigrants’ professional profiles in the country: - mainly with the growth of Europeans from EU and Americans (including Brazilians) in high qualified professions; - and the arrival of Asians as sales workers and vendors

11. Accordingly to Immigrants’ nationality there are different profiles in the Portuguese labour market Labour Immigration: Africans and Eastern Europeans Highly Skilled immigrants: EU citizens and Americans Immigrant Entrepreneurs: Asians, EU citizens and North Americans

12. Immigrants’ Rights and Duties in the Portuguese labour market… Immigrant workers have the same rights and duties as any Portuguese worker * have the right to participate in a trade union; * to participate in a demonstration; * to receive a salary; * to benefit from an unemployment subsidy; * to have secure and hygienic conditions in the work environment; * to work no more than 40 hours per weak; * to have 22 days of holidays per year

13. Although immigrants have the same rights and duties as the Portuguese workers, they are much vulnerable to certain difficulties in the Portuguese labour market… • Employers that contract illegal immigrants and do not pay their salaries; • Bureaucracies in the renovation of immigrant visas; • Barriers defined by the Portuguese laws: (1)Economic integration’ restrictions to immigrants with certain legal conditions(immigrants can only become entrepreneurs if they have an residence permit or work visa III). (2) Labour Law (until 1998) • Ethnic discrimination in the labour market access • Difficulties in the recognition of qualifications and skills - highly skilled immigrants in manual jobs - recognition of qualifications as a decentralized process • Entrepreneurs difficulties • not all immigrants can be entrepreneurs or create there own job • Access to bank loans • Lack of knowledge of Portuguese laws (informal economy)

14. Higher vulnerability to labour accidents • labour market pressures determine the rate of mortal accidents per year • Hierarchies established at work according to ethnicity and nationality • Social networks • Number of working hours • Higher vulnerability of newcomers • Immigrants’ legal condition

15. Initiatives to resolve immigrants difficulties in the Portuguese labour market • Extraordinary Regularization Processes • “One Stop Shop”: National Centres to Immigrants Support (with UNIVA’s, Cabinet to Support the Recognition of Qualifications, Cabinet to Support Immigrant Entrepreneurs) • Campaigns divulgating immigrants’ rights and duties in the Portuguese Labour Market (Portugal Acolhe) • Raising public awareness for tolerance and reception(Immigrants and Ethnic Minorities – Journalism for Tolerance and Publicity Campaign Immigrant Portugal. Tolerant Portugal) • EQUAL projects • Portuguese Commission Against Racial Discrimination

16. Developing a methodological framework for developing Local and Regional Plans for Social Inclusion Immigrants’ integration in the Portuguese Labour Market catarina.oliveira@acime.gov.ptwww.acime.gov.pt