Migrant Workers: What We Know
Tuesday 21 August
Since May 2004 10 Eastern European nations have joined the European Union.
The
The figures are incomplete, not least because the situation changes by the day, but there is enough information to some of the trends in the arrival of workers from Eastern European states.
Who are the workers?
The eight nations given unfettered access to the UK's jobs market in May 2004 were the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia, known as the "Accession Eight".
Two other nations joined the EU on the same day -
Along with other EU member states, the
Between May 2004 and June 2007 683,000 people from the "Accession Eight" nations registered to work in the
We cannot say whether all or just some of these workers are in the
Anecdotally, we know many workers come for short periods - but others certainly stay for a lot longer.
Over the first two years, the trend has been marginally upwards but has now levelled off.
In the first quarter after accession, 42,000 people came to work in the
The first half of 2007 saw a fall in numbers - 52,000 in the first three months and just under 50,000 between April and June.
By far and away the largest group of people coming to the
The next largest group are Slovakians. The smallest groups are Estonian and Slovenian.
As for the new joiners
While the government massively under-estimated the numbers who would come, experts advising
The expectation was that those who would make the trip would tend to be younger, tallying with recognised economic migration trends.
Four out of 10 of the workers who have come to
After that age, the numbers drop off steeply, almost certainly because people settled with families are less likely to move than those who are single or childless. This is a key factor to watch for the future.
Where do they go?
However, this time around the destinations have been more varied as workers have gone to entirely new areas short of labour.
The early signs of this were clear in the mass arrival of Eastern European and
This has meant that areas of the country unfamiliar to large-scale immigration, such as
This trend has continued. The latest available figures show that unlike during other periods,
Anecdotally, some employers and local authorities think that a key factor in where people turn up may be the growth in no-frills airlines into
What type of jobs?
The government has stressed that Accession Eight workers have been filling what it says are gaps in the labour market, particularly in near minimum wage industries such as food, catering, agriculture or manufacturing and production.
The reality is far more complicated.
Factory workers comprise 37% of the total number of workers over first two years, but many workers have now gone into administrative, business and clerical jobs, alongside influxes into the catering and hospitality industries.
Transport has seen some substantial numbers - 16,000 workers over three years. Some 21,000 workers have gone into construction.
Some 97% of registered workers were found to be working full time and the majority, as expected, were earning on the lower end of the scale - between minimum wage - currently £5.10 - and £6 an hour.
A social impact?
This remains one of the most controversial areas of migrant working because it is very difficult to calculate the costs on the state compared with the benefits of taxes raised. However, we do have some figures on benefit take-up relating to the registered workers.
According to the government, the numbers who have sought benefits and housing support have been "low".
Between April and June 2007, some 3,785 people applied for Income Support and the Jobseekers Allowance. Only 936 were deemed eligible for consideration. In all, 3,600 A8 nationals have successfully applied for income-related benefits since May 2004. A further 800 had homelessness support.
The figures also show a demographic shift taking place among the workers. The number of registered workers with children in the country had reached 20,000 at the end of 2006 with a further 9,000 in the last six months.
However, a separate figure shows that 68,927 have been approved for child benefit payments and 38,578 for tax credits (aimed at families) indicating that there are many workers who are not counted in the worker registration scheme figures.
This indicates that some workers who want to stay are probably bringing their families into the
Story from BBC NEWS