EU Labor Markets after Post-Enlargement Migration

Published on 01.06.2010 in Books and edited volumes

Kahanec, M. and Zimmermann, K.F. (2010): EU Labor Markets after Post-Enlargement Migration, Berlin: Springer, (2010), 1st Edition., 2010, VIII, 344 p.

Are immigrants from the new EU member states a threat to the Western welfare state? Do they take jobs away from the natives? And will the source countries suffer from severe brain drain or demographic instability? In a timely and unprecedented contribution, this book integrates what is known about post-enlargement migration and its effects on EU labor markets. Based on rigorous analysis and hard data, it makes a convincing case that there is no evidence that the post-enlargement labor migrants would on aggregate displace native workers or lower their wages, or that they would be more dependent on welfare. While brain drain may be a concern in the source countries, the anticipated brain circulation between EU member states may in fact help to solve their demographic and economic problems, and improve the allocative efficiency in the EU. The lesson is clear: free migration is a solution rather than a foe for labor market woes and cash-strapped social security systems in the EU.

“This unique volume tells the story of the flow prior to the global recession of the 2000s from the perspective of both recipient and source countries. Full of facts – the shift in new member immigration from Germany to the UK and Ireland, the movement from Bulgaria and Romania to Spain, the huge people flows from Baltic countries and Albania, the skill level of immigrants and their areas of work in the advanced countries – it shows the job market bases for immigration and its generally positive effects on the EU prior to the recession. A foreshadow of the incipient global labor market that will affect us all.” (Richard B. Freeman, Harvard University)

“An excellent set of analyses of the EU labor markets. A must read for labor economists and everyone interested in labor and migration issues in enlarged Europe.” (Jan Svejnar, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan)

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