Enlargement of the European Union with respect to Labour movement.

Enlargement of the European Union with respect to Labour movement. 40% of Polish workers want to move abroad, a recent survey says...

(PRWEB) March 26, 2004 -- 40% of Polish workers want to move abroad, a recent survey says. Nearly six million Poles, almost 40% of all Poles of working age, would like to move to live and work in another European country within the next five years, according to PWC research.

One would allege that this migration has the potential to help alleviate growing skill shortages in other Member States. In contrast, only 12% of Hungarians and 16% of Czechs 'definitely' or 'probably' want to live and work internationally - broadly on a par with the proportion of EU citizens of working age looking to move to live and work outside their own home countries now.

The study estimates that, if no immigration restrictions were in place, between 1.6 and 2.4 million people of working age would look to move from Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary to the European Union by 2006. Such a rate of flow is much higher than that suggested by most previous studies which have examined the implications of free movement of workers after enlargement of the European Union.

Gabor Moser, Head of Marketing at MnM International, said:
"With the integration of the fifteen new member countries, there will be both great winners and losers. Whilst one country will benefit from a wider choice of labour force at lower costs, another country will be loosing its core labour force due to not being able to offer the same benefits and rewards in place in the existing member countries. It may take many years before this situation stabilises, even with urgent intervention from Brussels".

Even allowing for the considerable uncertainties associated with predicting migration, the research provides important insights into the future pattern of labour movement across Europe. As such, it has important implications for the development of Europe's labour market and for the economic development of the accession countries.

The migration of skilled workers from the accession countries has the potential to make an important contribution to alleviating emerging skill deficiencies in Member States. At the same time, if as many young, skilled Polish workers actually choose to move, in order to live and work outside Poland, as say they would like to do so, then this could have significant adverse consequences for the development of Poland's economy.

Several factors, however, may alleviate the pressure to move countries. Most notably, perhaps, if the accession countries are able to capitalise on their recent economic growth to attract more investment from international firms then this could help to enhance the opportunities for the most skilled workers within Poland.

On the other hand, if the level of movement of unskilled or unemployed workers is as great as anticipated, then this could have a more severe negative impact on local labour market conditions in those EU Member States.

Attitudes to labour mobility within Europe vary significantly. More citizens in Poland (58%), Sweden (58%) and the Czech Republic (52%) agree strongly that it should be made easier for people in Europe to live and work in other European Union countries. In contrast, Germans (20%) and Britons (25%) are least enthusiastic, although relatively few disagree with the notion of making it easier for people to live and work in other countries.

The key findings from Poland suggest that:
The European Union is the preferred destination for 53% of people, with Germany (25%) being the most frequently cited country, although more than one in five Poles cite Canada and the United States as countries where they would like to live and work.

Of the Poles preferring to move to an EU destination, the favoured countries after Germany are Italy 12%, the UK and France 10%, Spain 9% and the Netherlands 8%.

Poles are motivated by a desire to improve their pay more than residents of any of the other countries surveyed, reflecting Poland's relatively low average incomes; and for Poles, presently the biggest barriers to moving to live and work internationally are lack of information about employment opportunities, lack of language skills and the difficulty in procuring the necessary work permits.

The key findings from Hungary suggest that:
The European Union is the preferred destination for 23% of people, with Germany (12%) and Austria (8%) being the most frequently cited countries; 75% of Hungarians do not wish to move at all to live and work internationally. Economic factors, namely a desire to improve their standard of living and their pay and income are the key motivations for Hungarians; and the most important barrier is family ties.

The key findings from the Czech Republic suggest that:
The European Union is the preferred destination for 33% of people, with Germany (16%) being the most frequently cited country followed by Austria (11%), the UK (8%), France (7%): significantly, 14% of Czechs cited the United States as the country in which they would most like to live and work.

60% of Czechs do not wish to move to live and work internationally. Three main factors motivate Czechs to want to move to live and work in another country: a desire to improve their pay, a desire to improve their standard of living and a desire to experience life in another country. Czechs see no major barriers, but see as the most important obstacle the need to adjust to a different culture.

If you wish to find out about working in other European Union Member States, please contact MnM International by visiting www.MnMinternationl.org or email EUaffairs@MnMinternational.org