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Many low-income countries and development organizations are calling for greater liberalization of labor immigration policies in high-income countries. At the same time, human rights organizations and migrant rights advocates demand more equal rights for migrant workers. The Price of Rights shows why you cannot always have both. Examining labor immigration policies in over forty countries, as well as policy drivers in major migrant-receiving and migrant-sending states, Martin Ruhs finds that there are trade-offs in the policies of high-income countries between openness to admitting migrant workers and some of the rights granted to migrants after admission. Insisting on greater equality of rights for migrant workers can come at the price of more restrictive admission policies, especially for lower-skilled workers. Ruhs advocates the liberalization of international labor migration through temporary migration programs that protect a universal set of core rights and account for the interests of nation-states by restricting a few specific rights that create net costs for receiving countries. The Price of Rights analyzes how high-income countries restrict the rights of migrant workers as part of their labor immigration policies and discusses the implications for global debates about regulating labor migration and protecting migrants. It comprehensively looks at the tensions between human rights and citizenship rights, the agency and interests of migrants and states, and the determinants and ethics of labor immigration policy.

Background A systematic attempt to summarize the literature that examines working conditions and occupational health among immigrant in Europe and Canada. Methods We established inclusion criteria, searched systematically for articles included in the Medline, Embase and Social Sciences Citation Index databases in the period 2000–2016 and checked the reference lists of all included papers. Results Eighty-two studies were included in this review; 90% were cross-sectional and 80% were based on self-report. Work injuries were consistently found to be more prevalent among immigrants in studies from different countries and in studies with different designs. The prevalence of perceived discrimination or bullying was found to be consistently higher among immigrant workers than among natives. In general, however, we found that the evidence that immigrant workers are more likely to be exposed to physical or chemical hazards and poor psychosocial working conditions is very limited. A few Scandinavian studies support the idea that occupational factors may partly contribute to the higher risk of sick leave or disability pension observed among immigrants. However, the evidence for working conditions as a potential mediator of the associations between immigrant status and poor general health and mental distress was very limited. Conclusion Some indicators suggest that immigrant workers in Europe and Canada experience poorer working conditions and occupational health than do native workers. However, the ability to draw conclusions is limited by the large gaps in the available data, heterogeneity of immigrant working populations, and the lack of prospectively designed cohort studies.

Evidence suggests that precarious employment can have detrimental effects on workers' health, including mental health. Migrant workers are discussed to be especially vulnerable to such effects. Thus, we systematically reviewed existing research on the association between precarious employment and migrant workers' mental health. Three electronic databases (Web of Science, PsycINFO and PubMed/Medline) were searched for original articles on quantitative and qualitative studies published from January 1970 to February 2022 in English, German, Turkish and Spanish. Multiple dimensions of precarious employment were considered as exposure, with mental health problems as outcomes. Narrative synthesis and thematic analyses were performed to summarize the findings of the included studies along with risk of bias and quality assessment. The literature search resulted in 1557 original articles, 66 of which met the inclusion criteria - 43 were of high quality and 22 were of moderate quality. The most common exposure dimensions analyzed in the studies included temporariness, vulnerability, poor interpersonal relationships, disempowerment, lacking workers' rights and low income. The outcome measures included stress, depression, anxiety and poor general mental health. The prevalence of these outcomes varied between 10-75% among the included quantitative studies. All qualitative studies reported one or more dimensions of precarious employment as an underlying factor of the development of mental health problems among migrants. Of 33 quantitative studies, 23 reported evidence for an association between dimensions of precarious employment and mental health. The results of this review support the hypothesis that precarious employment is associated with migrant workers' mental health.

This article examines the organizing practices of indie unions – the emerging grassroots unions coled by precarious migrant workers. It draws on an embedded actor-centred approach involving extensive multi-sited ethnography. The article shows how workers normally considered unorganizable by the established unions can build lasting solidarity and associational power and obtain material and non-material rewards in the context of precarity, scarce economic resources and a hostile environment. Here, I argue that the organization of workers into ‘communities of struggle’ geared towards mobilization facilitates their empowerment, effectiveness and social integration. The article contributes to labour mobilization theory by redefining the concept of organizing in inclusionary terms, so that the collective industrial agency of precarious and migrant workers organizing outside the established unions can be adequately recognized and accounted for.

Background Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are increasingly prevalent among South Asian migrants, with evidence suggesting that many adopt unhealthy behavioural risk factors (BRFs) in host countries. Despite Sri Lanka’s substantial temporary migrant workforce exceeding 1.5 million, data on BRFs of NCDs among returnee migrant workers remains scarce. This study aims to describe the prevalence of BRFs of NCDs and associated factors among Sri Lankan returnee migrant workers from the Middle East. Methods This community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 680 returnee Middle East migrant workers in the Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka. Study participants were selected using a three-stage cluster sampling method based on probability-proportionate-to-size technique. A pretested interviewer-administered questionnaire was utilized for data collection. Prevalences were presented as percentages with 95% confidence intervals. Logistic regression analysis was applied to identify correlates for BRFs. Results Response rate was 94.4% ( N  = 642). The prevalence of BRFs was as follows: daily tobacco use 14.2% (95% CI: 11.5–17.1), current alcohol use 20.1% (95% CI: 17.0-23.4), inadequate fruit/vegetable intake 89.3% (95% CI: 86.6–91.6), and physical inactivity 31.4% (95% CI: 27.8–35.2). Daily tobacco use was significantly associated with the 35–42 age group (AOR 2.04, 95% CI: 1.16–3.57), being male (AOR 17.04, 95% CI: 7.19–40.39), and having accumulated savings (AOR 2.16, 95% CI: 1.25–3.72). Current alcohol use was associated with being currently employed (AOR 7.18, 95% CI: 2.61–20.95), being a male (AOR 44.51, 95% CI: 12.30-149.15), lower education level (AOR 2.97, 95% CI:1.67–5.79). Insufficient fruit/vegetable consumption was associated with; lower household income (AOR 4.32, 95% CI: 2.12–8.09), and inadequate savings (AOR 2.86, 95% CI: 1.18–6.25). Physical inactivity was correlated with; being female (AOR 5.26, 95% CI: 1.75–9.09), having accumulated savings (AOR 1.71, 95% CI: 1.19–2.92). Conclusion Returnee migrant workers exhibit a high prevalence of BRFs, influenced significantly by demographic, socio-economic, and migration-related factors. Migrant-friendly interventions promoting healthcare access, voluntary NCD screenings, and health-literacy assistance are recommended throughout the migration process, alongside further research.

Based on insights from Filipina experiences of domestic work in Paris and Hong Kong, this volume breaks through the polarized thinking and migration-centric policy action on the protection of migrant women domestic workers from abuse to link migrants' rights and victimization with livelihood, migration and development. The book contextualizes agency and rights in the workers' capability to secure a livelihood in the global political economy and is instrumental in making the problem of migrant women workers' empowerment both a migration and development agenda. The volume is essential reading for social scientists, bureaucrats and non-governmental political activists interested in the protection of the rights and livelihoods of migrants. It will also appeal to migration and feminist scholars who have yet to adopt the contribution of critical development studies in the analysis of low-skilled female labour migration.

Laboring in the Shadow of Empire: Race, Gender, and Care Work in Portugal examines the everyday lives of an African-descendant care service workforce that labors in an ostensibly \"anti-racial\" Europe and against the backdrop of the Portuguese colonial empire. While much of the literature on global care work has focused on Asian and Latine migrant care workers, there is comparatively less research that explicitly examines African care workers and their migration histories to Europe. Sociologist Celeste Vaughan Curington focuses on Portugal-a European setting with comparatively liberal policies around family settlement and naturalization for migrants. In this setting, rapid urbanization in the late twentieth century, along with a national push to reconcile work and family, has shaped the growth of paid home care and cleaning service industries. Many researchers focus on informal work settings, where immigrant rights are restricted and many workers are undocumented or without permanent residence status. Curington instead examines workers who have accessed citizenship or permanent residence status and also explores African women's experiences laboring in care and service industries in the formal market, revealing how deeply colonial and intersectional logics of a racialized and international division of reproductive labor in Portugal render these women \"hyper-invisible\" and \"hyper-visible\" as \"appropriate\" workers in Lisbon.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to identify factors associated with Indonesian migrant workers’ satisfaction with healthcare services in Taiwan, and to compare their satisfaction of healthcare between Taiwan and Indonesia. Methods This cross-sectional study collected data through self-reported questionnaires from 352 participants. Inclusion criteria of participants were legal Indonesian migrant workers aged 18–55 years who were willing to participate, and only those who had used healthcare services for inpatient, outpatient, or emergency care were included in the analysis ( n  = 241). We used the SERVQUAL model, based on the gap theory of service quality, to assess service quality applied to health care. Analytical methods included descriptive analyses, linear regression, and multinomial logistic regression. Results Satisfaction with Taiwan’s health care was high (mean = 4.23 of 5), and almost 70% reported that different dimensions of Taiwan’s health care were better than those of Indonesia. Among the healthcare system factors, longer waiting time was related to lower empathic satisfaction (B=- 0.272), while getting more assistance from volunteers (B = 0.067) and friendliness of staff (B = 0.112) were related to higher tangible satisfaction. When comparing health care in Taiwan to that in Indonesia, longer waiting time was related to higher satisfaction with Indonesia’s healthcare (in tangibility and in responsiveness); expensive health service payment was related to lower satisfaction in Taiwan’ healthcare (OR = 0.432 in tangibility) or higher satisfaction of Indonesia’ healthcare (OR = 5.079 in reliability); and language was related to better satisfaction of Indonesia’s healthcare (OR = 5.277 in tangibility and OR = 10.443 in reliability). Meanwhile, easy explanation was related to lower satisfaction with Indonesia’s healthcare (OR = 0.445 in assurance), and getting volunteer assistance (OR = 0.326 in the tangibility and OR = 0.272 in reliability), and staff friendliness (OR = 0.085 in reliability and OR = 0.216 in empathy) were related to lower satisfaction of Indonesia’s health care. Education and other demographics also related to the comparison of satisfaction. Odds ratios with wide confidence intervals should be explained conservatively. Conclusions Individual and healthcare system factors of Indonesian migrant workers influenced the level of their satisfaction with healthcare services in Taiwan in the tangibility and the empathy dimensions. Healthcare providers should consider these factors to improve service quality and migrant worker satisfaction.

Background Over 1.5 million Sri Lankans are employed overseas, predominantly as temporary migrant workers in the Middle East. Despite their substantial contribution to the national economy, empirical evidence on their reintegration experiences after return remains limited. This study aimed to develop and validate an Index of Reintegration (IR) to assess the reintegration status of workers who returned from the Middle East and are living in the Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka. Methods The IR was developed using a three-phase process: item development, scale development, and scale evaluation. Item development utilised deductive (literature review) and inductive (interviews with experts, returnees and their families) methods. A community-based survey among 650 returnee migrant workers in Kurunegala District collected data for factor analysis in the scale development phase. Developed scale was evaluated for its reliability and validity. Results Exploratory Factor Analysis revealed a 20-item IR with six factors, explaining approximately 60% of the total variance. Confirmatory Factor Analysis affirmed significant factor loading for all items to their respective factor and supported the goodness of fit for the six-factor model. The factors encompass Economic Self-Sufficiency, Family Reacceptance, Physical-Psychological Health, Social Stability, Support Networks, and Cultural Adaptation. Scale evaluation for reliability indicated Cronbach’s alpha values ≥ 0.7 for all components. The scale underwent validation for content validity and exhibited good construct validity. Conclusions The IR is a reliable and valid tool to assess the reintegration status of Sri Lankan workers who returned from Middle East. The scale has broad applications for research and practice. Further research across diverse migrant worker groups is recommended to enhance the scale’s generalisability and robustness.

How do parents and children care for each other when they are separated because of migration? The way in which transnational families maintain long-distance relationships has been revolutionised by the emergence of new media such as email, instant messaging, social networking sites, webcam and texting. A migrant mother can now call and text her left-behind children several times a day, peruse social networking sites and leave the webcam for 12 hours achieving a sense of co-presence. Drawing on a long-term ethnographic study of prolonged separation between migrant mothers and their children who remain in the Philippines, this book develops groundbreaking theory for understanding both new media and the nature of mediated relationships. It brings together the perspectives of both the mothers and children and shows how the very nature of family relationships is changing. New media, understood as an emerging environment of polymedia, have become integral to the way family relationships are enacted and experienced. The theory of polymedia extends beyond the poignant case study and is developed as a major contribution for understanding the interconnections between digital media and interpersonal relationships. \"[A] compelling read about the ‘connected transnational family’ … The most compelling aspect of this book, this reader would argue, is its simultaneous engagement with a broad range of entangled issues. It convincingly puts mothers/children, migration/communication, mediation/relationship, past/present/future as well as theory/research practice into close encounter throughout.\" - Nicole Shephard, LSE Review of Books \"Mirca Madianou and Daniel Miller seem to have formed a dream team when they embarked on their mutual research project on transnational families and the role of ICTs ... In my view, the book succeeds in what many authors fruitlessly pursue: deriving convincing theory from an abundance of vast qualitative data. It is a highly engaging book that is rich in detail without drowning the reader in it. Its empirical and theoretical innovations make it a highly recommended book for any scholar working on media and migration, long-distance communication and the increasingly complex media environments that enfold us.\" - Kevin Smets, Communications \"An exemplary and groundbreaking study, with contributions to theory and our understanding of polymedia in everyday life, this stands out as an extraordinary read on the technology of relationships.\" - Zizi Papacharissi, University of Illinois-Chicago, USA \"This fascinating, richly detailed book investigates the role that fluency across multiple digital platforms plays in enabling mothering and caring to be sustained at a distance. A genuine breakthrough.\" - Nick Couldry , Goldmiths, University of London, UK \"With deft weaving of interview material and theorization...Mirca Madianou and Daniel Miller have produced an important and useful theoretical intervention that advances our understanding of the social life of transnational communities.\" - Radha S. Hegde, Media, Culture, & Society Mirca Madianou is Senior Lecturer in Media and Communication at the University of Leicester, UK. She is the author of Mediating the Nation and several articles on the social consequences of the media. Daniel Miller is Professor of Material Culture at the Department of Anthropology, University College London, UK. His most recent books include Tales from Facebook and Digital Anthropology (edited with Heather Horst). 1. Introduction 2. Philippines at the Forefront of Globalisation 3. The Hidden Motivations of Migration 4. Crafting Love: Letters and Cassettes 5. The Cultural Contradictions of Transnational Motherhood: The Mothers’ Perspective 6. The Children’s Perspective 7. Technologies of Relationships 8. Polymedia 9. A Theory of Mediated Relationships 10. Appendix: A Note on Method