Assessment of the recruitment framework of Private Employment Agencies

The study was undertaken to evaluate the compliance of the regulatory framework of Private Employment Agencies (PEAs) in Albania with international standards vis-à-vis related with migrant workers recruitment. Moreover, detailed analysis of the sector will serve to develop recommendations on the ethical recruitment standards for Albanian public and private employment agencies.

Part of the study was to identify and take account of the “best practices” of PEAs operation from countries that have a regulated and consolidated market. 

This assessment was carried out under the project of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) “Promotion of decent work opportunities and protection of migrant workers in Albania”. The aforementioned project was funded by the Government of Sweden through the One UN Coherence Fund and implemented by IOM Tirana (Albania) in partnership with major actors of the Government of Albania.

The project aims to contribute to the development of an effective management system of employment mediation, which will promote ethical recruitment, decent work and protect migrant workers. The assessment took into consideration Albanian migrant workers seeking for employment abroad, present candidates and past migrant workers, as well as foreign migrant workers who have found employment opportunities in Albania. Special focus is given to the gender factor and recommendations aim at supporting the Government of Albania in developing gender-sensitive policies for regulating the status of migrant workers by ensuring their protection.

A comprehensive analysis of policies and frameworks governing foreign employment for Nepali women migrant workers and migrant domestic workers. Exploring the migration policymaking process with a specific focus on bans and restrictions on foreign employme

One of the principal causes and risk factors for forced labour and trafficking, identified by past research led by the International Labour Organization (ILO)’s Work in Freedom (WiF) Programme, is restrictive and gender-insensitive migration policies. These include restrictions on movement in the form of bans and restrictions on the departure of women migrant workers and migrant domestic workers from origin countries to seek foreign employment.

In the ILO’s efforts to support the construction of regular migration pathways for women migrant workers and migrant domestic workers which respect their safety, dignity, wellbeing and human and labour rights and which allow them to enrich their own lives, the lives of their families and communities back home, the Work in Freedom Programme of ILO Country Office for Nepal commissioned this present review between February and June 2020 as a comprehensive analysis of legal and policy frameworks governing foreign employment for women migrant workers and migrant domestic workers. This review is an update of ILO’s previous study of migration bans, 'No Easy Exit: Migration Bans Affecting Women from Nepal' published in 2015, but fills an important research gap by focusing on the policy formulation phase itself. The findings identify and characterize the ways in which stakeholders (governmental and otherwise) formulate policy narratives, negotiate policies and regulations and invoke knowledge claims in order to justify regulatory and policy interventions related to women migrant workers, migrant domestic workers and associated thematic areas – including anti-trafficking frameworks, frameworks combatting forced labour, domestic work and more.

Research and Policy Brief: Avenues for exploited migrant workers to remain in their country of employment to pursue labour remedies

Exploited migrant workers often don't raise complaints because they fear losing their visa or being deported. There is generally no opportunity for migrant workers to pursue wage claims at the end of their stay because they must immediately leave the country.

As a result, abusive employers are never held to account, and the vast majority return home without the wages they are owed. Pursuing claims after they leave is extremely difficult.

Governments must create migration frameworks that reduce the vulnerability of migrant workers who address exploitation, and enable exploited migrants to extend their stay for a short period in the country of employment to remedy wage theft and hold employers accountable for labour violations.

This new Research and Policy Brief sets out best practice models that governments should consider implementing, with discussion of current global examples of promising laws and policies intended to achieve these goals.

This includes current examples of

• visa portability for exploited migrant workers to bring claims and find a new sponsor,

• short term visas with work rights to pursue wage claims at the end of a migrant worker’s stay,

• deferral of removal (with work rights) for undocumented workers who pursue labour claims, and

• visas for victims of trafficking and criminal wage theft and exploitation to pursue civil labour claims.

The Brief is accompanied by a more detailed case study of recent advances in the United States.

Protecting migrant workers from exploitation in the EU: workers’ perspectives’, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights

This report is the EU Fundamental Rights Agency’s fourth on the topic of severe labour exploitation. Based on interviews with 237 exploited workers, it paints a bleak picture of severe exploitation and abuse. The workers include both people who came to the EU, and EU nationals who moved to another EU country. They were active in diverse sectors, and their legal status also varied.

Promoting fair and ethical recruitment in a digital world

This joint report by the ILO and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) explores innovative state-facilitated digital technology platforms from four different contexts, with a focus on the Employment Permit System of the Republic of Korea, Musaned from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, eMigrate from the Republic of India and the European Network of Employment Services.

The study maps four examples of state-facilitated digital technology platforms that assist the recruitment, placement, and/or job matching for migrant workers. In reviewing some of the promising practices and lessons learnt, the study aims to offer preliminary guidance to States developing similar online applications and platforms, while also discussing possible approaches on how to best leverage new techniques and technologies, including blockchain technology. When designed and implemented in an inclusive way, these digital technology platforms have the potential to promote institutional transparency and fairness, and can reduce the costs of labour migration and limit the potential for collusion between private recruitment agencies.

Locked down and in limbo: The global impact of COVID-19 on migrant worker rights and recruitment

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on migrant workers and their access to decent work. Beyond the immediate public health crisis, response measures including lockdowns and border closures had specific implications for the hiring and employment conditions of migrant workers. These measures have increased the vulnerability of migrant workers at the same time as the economic and social dependence on migrant workers who deliver essential services such as healthcare and sanitation has deepened.

To chart and understand this impact in detail, the ILO commissioned a series of rapid assessments in some of the world’s most significant corridors for low-wage migrant workers. Completed in the initial months of the crisis (early to mid-2020), these assessments gathered primary data in the form of interviews and surveys from the perspective of migrant workers and key stakeholders (including governments, civil society, the recruitment sector, employers’ organizations, unions and workers’ organizations) engaged in migration governance, migrant worker deployment and the protection of the rights of migrant workers.

These rapid assessments provide valuable snapshots of the immediate impact of the pandemic and early responses to the pandemic on migrant workers in various parts of the world. Common themes emerging from the research also illustrate the ways in which the pandemic exacerbated existing inequalities and vulnerabilities experienced by migrant workers globally. These themes demonstrate the clear linkages between the impact of the pandemic on migrant workers and the structural causes of the inequalities and vulnerabilities embedded in many current labour migration processes and practices.

Drawing on the rapid assessments, this report provides a global picture of the impact of the crisis on migrant workers, and provides valuable recommendations for ensuring protection of migrant workers’ rights.