Labour migration
Research topic
The EU expansions in 2004 and 2007 led to significant labour immigration to Norway. This provided businesses with access to labour but also brought challenges such as low-wage competition and labour market crime. Fafo researches how wages and working conditions are under pressure, as well as the working conditions for foreign workers.
Through the EEA agreement, Norway is part of the EU's internal market, with free movement of goods, services, labour, and capital. Many labour immigrants to Norway have settled permanently. Additionally, a large number of people have come for short-term stays, either commuting or working on assignments for their foreign employer.
Labour immigrants from Poland and Lithuania are the dominant groups in Norway. Many have found jobs in the construction industry – the first industry to be covered by a generalised collective agreement in 2007. The consequences of labour immigration are a significant reason for the controversy over the EEA agreement within the labour movement. A large influx of foreign labour has created fears that parts of the labour market will form A and B teams. This can be due to low wages, language and cultural problems, and some employers favouring foreign labour because they are considered more flexible.
Fafo researches how wages and working conditions are under pressure, how the generalisation scheme has worked in industries with high immigration, and challenges in organising labour immigrants. We study employers' motivation for using foreign labour and the consequences for health, environment, and safety, including language problems or lack of training.
The development is monitored through Fafo Østforum (in Norwegian only), a project established in 2004, where the main activities are news dissemination online and seminars.
