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II. STATUS OF OBSERVANCE OF UKRAINIAN MIGRANT WORKERS’ RIGHTS IN THE RECEIVING COUNTRIES

5. EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER COUNTRIES

The European Union is the most economically developed regional organization integrating 15 countries of Western and Central Europe with a population of more than 400 million. Its high standards of living and receptive labor market lure a vast number of migrant workers from all over the world. By approximate estimates of experts, 25% of Ukrainian migrant workers are now in the EU countries. This number will grow markedly after ten Eastern European countries accede to the EU in 2004.

Proceeding from the number of Ukrainian migrant workers in the EU, the following categories of countries can be singled out:

§ countries traditionally attracting substantial migration flows from Ukraine – Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece;

§ countries with relatively few Ukrainian migrant workers – Austria, Germany, France, the UK;

§ Scandinavian countries with a negligible number of Ukrainian migrant workers.

PORTUGAL. According to the information of the Ukrainian Embassy in Portugal, there is a large inflow of Ukrainian migrant workers, as the country tries to meet its requirements in extra labor. Not so long ago entry into the country followed a simplified procedure of legalization: a contract for employment certified by the General Inspectorate for Labor entitled the applicant to an employment visa for one year and the possibility to extend it to five years. Under Decree No.4/2001 of January 10, 2001 a migrant worker holding an employment visa is permitted to be joined by a wife/husband, children under the age of 21, and parents, and many of our countrymen availed themselves of this opportunity. By estimates of the Ukrainian Embassy, there are some 150,000 Ukrainian citizens in Portugal to date. Relying on the information of the mass media, experts estimate the number to be 200,000.

On November 30, 2001 the government of Portugal adopted a regulation under which employment visas could be issued only to those aliens who proved that they stayed in the country before that date.

Through the mediation of dubious tourist agencies a lot of Ukrainians continue arriving in the Portugal by scheduled bus runs from the largest Ukrain­ian cities. The arrivals are peasants, industrial workers, doctors, engineers, and former army officers, who borrow money (the tour, along with promise of employment, costs from US $1,000 to US $1,200) or apply for a credit on real estate (house or apartment). The men usually work as builders, drivers, mechanics and fitters, while the women as office cleaners, domestics or factory workers. They all are in great demand on the Portuguese market because of their high educational attainments and industriousness. The majority of the job seekers are young people, since applicants of 45 years of age and older have little chances to land jobs.

The vast majority of the migrant workers come from Ukraine’s western regions, above all Chernivtsi, Ternopil and Ivano-Frankivsk oblasts as well as from other regions and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

Their large number causes a lot of problems – they become victims of unscrupulous employers who do not pay them what they deserve, and they are robbed by criminals (originating from our country as well), who take away not only their earnings, but also their passports and personal effects.

A bilateral treaty on temporary migration of Ukrainian citizens to the Portuguese Republic, signed on February 13, 2003 by the ministers of foreign affairs of Ukraine and Portugal, is intended to check entry into the country through the mediation of fictitious agencies (occasionally criminal) and to make easier the protection of the rights and interests of legally employed Ukrainian citizens.

Ukrainian citizens are recruited under a centralized procedure through the State Employment Center of the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy of Ukraine and the Institute of Occupation and Professional Training under the Ministry of Social Security and Labor of the Portuguese Republic. Portuguese employers forward all vacancies through the Embassy of the Portuguese Republic in Ukraine to Ukraine’s State Employment Center that selects the candidates and facilitates the issue of their labor contracts and employment visas.

The Ukrainian citizens who migrate to Portugal under the provisions of this treaty enjoy the same treatment as Portuguese citizens as regards pay and social guarantees. They have the same rights and safeguards as Portuguese citizens under operative legislation on health care and labor safety.

According to the information of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Embassy in Portugal assists our citizens in placing them with employers – the consular department posts hundreds of job offers and addresses of free courses in Portuguese, maintains close contacts with the Lisbon Labor Exchange that has a Ukrainian interpreter, and distributes two Russian-language newspapers, Slovo (Word) and Nasha gazeta (Our Gazette), which carry advertisements for employment.

In 2002 a new law on immigration came into effect in Portugal. Under this law local authorities are granted the right to set quotas of alien workers for their regions, employment visas for up to two years are issued only in the country of the migrants’ origin and extended if there is a need in specific specialists, and immigrants are denied unemployment assistance.

Greece. Greece traditionally enjoys popularity with both Ukrainian and other migrant workers. With a population of 10 million, Greece has one million migrant workers from all over the world. However, the number of Ukrainian illegal migrant workers has sharply decreased during the past few years. By expert estimates of the Ukrainian Embassy in Greece, illegal migrants from Ukraine numbered 3,000 by mid-2002, which was four times less than in 2000. This is explained by the enactment of the Law On Aliens in May 2001, which stipulates the granting of residence permits to those illegal migrants who resided on the territory of Greece not less than two years before the law came into effect.

As a rule, Ukrainian citizens are engaged in the private sector as nurses of the elderly, domestics, and dancers in restaurants and cafes.

By estimates of both the Ukrainian Embassy in Greece and experts, the overwhelming majority of Ukrainian citizens (women, as a rule) legalized their status, which considerably blunted the acuteness of the problem of illegal migrants. This was also caused by the substantial decline of demand in unskilled labor.

But in the opinion of the Commissioner for Human Rights, the legalization of a certain number of Ukrainian illegal migrant workers, though smoothing out the problem for the time being, will bring about in the future a further influx of “illegals” encouraged by the positive results of their countrymen.

In this connection, it is extremely important to continue concluding bilateral treaties on employment. In response to the Commissioner’s inquiry, the Embassy of the Hellenic Republic in Ukraine informed that the ministers of foreign affairs of both countries discussed the possibility of concluding bilateral treaties on social security and reciprocal employment between Ukraine and Greece when the Ukrain­ian Minister Anatoliy Zlenko visited Athens on April 18, 2002. Ten days later, on April 24, the Ukrainian Embassy forwarded to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Greece a draft of such a treaty for the consideration of the Greek party.

Trafficking in persons remains a troublesome problem for Greece. In January 2001 the members of the National Coordination Council for the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons under the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights visited Greece in order to establish working contacts with relevant government agencies to design a joint program of actions.

On the delegation were MPs, competent employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the Attorney General, as well as representatives of NGOs and the mass media.

During meetings with the Greek MPs as well as managers of relevant ministries and agencies the complex migration situation in the country was discussed, in particular the lot of Ukrainian women migrants as potential victims in the sex industry. In order to curb prostitution, Greece adopted the Law On Aliens. When it was drafted, Greek lawmakers took into account the provisions of Article 124¹ of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which establishes criminal liability for trafficking in persons (in the 1998 version of the Criminal Code).

The Greek MPs expressed the desire to cooperate with Ukraine for the prevention of trafficking in persons and also for liberalizing visa regulations for Ukrainian citizens.

The working meetings expedited the drafting of bilateral ministerial agreements. In particular, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and the Ministry for the Protection of Public Order of Greece are drafting an agreement on cooperation in combating terrorism, illicit turnover of narcotic substances, and organized crimes.

During the visit, the Ukrainian Commissioner, jointly with the managers of the consular department of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, visited a prison for women who were to be deported – 19 Ukrainians from among 200 alien women. Three of them were returned to Ukraine (described in greater detail in the next chapter).

SPAIN. According to the information of the Ukrainian Embassy in Spain, there is a stable upward trend of “hidden” migration of Ukrainian citizens to Spain. Experts estimate that their number is over 100,000 persons.

The vast majority of Ukrainian migrants travel to Spain legally with tourist visas, although 95% of them intend to find jobs. When their tourist visas expire, they stay on and become “illegals.”

In the opinion of the Commissioner for Human Rights, it is important to conclude a bilateral treaty on employment and social protection between Ukraine and Spain. The draft of a treaty, as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine informed, is to be discussed by the Spanish party shortly.

ITALY. To date Italy has one of the largest groups of Ukrainian migrant workers.

According to the information the Italian Embassy in Ukraine forwarded upon request of the Commissioner, the embassy issued to Ukrainian citizens 469 visas for study, 44 visas for medical treatment, and 3,660 employment visas, i.e. for more than 4,000 people, from 2000 to 2002 (first six months).

Relying on the information of the Italian Embassy, it is nonetheless difficult to judge about the total number of Ukrainians in Italy. Officially, there are 11,205 Ukrainian citizens who have residence permits issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy. But there are a lot more staying there illegally. According to the estimates of the Italian Embassy in Ukraine, their number ranges from 50,000 to 100,000. Experts estimate this number to be around 200,000.

As mentioned earlier, Italy is a traditional destination for a large number of women migrants, although men do not seem to be less. The women mainly care for the elderly and children, work as office cleaners, domestics, in bars and the like. Quite a few of the men are engaged in the private sector as well as on construction sites and in agriculture.

In response to the request of the Commissioner, the Italian Embassy in Ukraine informed that the “Ukrainian migrants are distinguished for their peaceable nature. Ukrainians have asserted themselves as a community, which the Italians favor with a lot of goodwill.”

By request of the Commissioner the Western Ukrainian Women’s Prospects Center in Lviv conducted in January 2002 a sociological poll among 441 Ukrain­ians who left for Italy to work.

The poll showed that over 45% of the respondents worked in Italy one year, 30% from one to two years, over 13% from two to three years, and 10% for more than three years.

52.6% of the respondents arrived from Ukraine’s oblast centers, 20.2% from district centers, 2.3% from townships, and 6.6% from villages.

36.7% of the respondents had a higher education, 36.5% a secondary special education, 24.9% a secondary education, and 0.9% an incomplete higher education.

Over a half of the respondents were married, and more than 70% of them had one or two children.

Most of the violated rights of Ukrainian migrant workers in Italy are related to: failure of employers to abide by their remuneration commitments, unfair remuneration as compared with what Italians earn, medical aid, sexual abuse of women, and trafficking in persons.

For the Ukrainian Embassy in Italy it is very difficult to come to the assistance of our citizens, because theirs is an illegal status and, accordingly, they lack insurance contracts and cannot count on proper medical aid and social security.

In the opinion of the Commissioner for Human Rights, the conclusion of agreements on social insurance and employment of Ukrainian citizens in Italy could to a considerable extent improve the situation of compliance with their rights.

The Italian Embassy in Ukraine informed that the conclusion of bilateral treaties on legal protection and social assistance of Ukrainian citizens in Italy was blocked by decision of the Ukrainian government not to sign with Italy a treaty on readmission. Given the enactment of a new immigration law, such a treaty proves of little relevance, since the new law governs the aggregate of relationships (access to the labor market, measures to regulate the status of some categories of illegal migrants, and the like).

The new law, stipulating stricter treatment of illegal migrants, will make it possible to improve the conditions of the migrants after they legalize their status and acquire better guarantees for their stay in Italy.

GERMANY. According to the information of the Ukrainian Embassy in Germany, no expert estimates have been made regarding the number of Ukrainian illegal migrant workers in that country. As the German Embassy in Ukraine informed, it issued 708,523 visas in the period from 200 to 2002 (nine months). The embassy also provided information about cases when Ukrainian citizens fraudulently acquired visas supposedly for visiting Germany as tourists, while in real fact their intention was to engage in illegal work in the countries of the Schengen zone. Most of such applicants, as the German Embassy in Ukraine holds, have their documents forged in our country. In Germany a pretrial investigation is going on now against the organizers of illegal trafficking of migrant workers from Ukraine.

Under operative German legislation an alien permanently residing in Germany can be employed if he has a permit issued regardless of the conditions of work. Permits are issued only if the duration of the job does not exceed three months. It can be limited in time depending on the group of professions, specific enterprises, sectors of the economy or regions of the country.

The legal provisions of employment of foreign workers undergoing training or upgrading their skills in the country also offer a lot of opportunities for employment. Also permitted is employment of graduates of foreign higher and special educational establishments as well as of other students who have a diploma in professional education or a corresponding professional qualification.

Conclusion of employment treaties is an important area in safeguarding the rights of migrant workers. The treaties stipulate that hire and remuneration is provided under the national principle, i.e. on the very same grounds as for German citizens.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Germany informed that the German party drafted and forwarded for review of the Ukrainian party a draft of a Treaty in the Field of Labor Policy and Social Policy. The draft treaty provides for, in part, cooperation for encouraging labor and prevention of transboundary illegal labor.

UNITED KINGDOM. Experts estimate that the UK has a comparatively small number of migrant workers from Ukraine. At July 1, 2002 the consular service of the Ukrainian Embassy in the UK had registered 285 employed Ukrainian citizens. Such a situation is explained that the UK is an insular country that has not joined the Schengen zone, some of its cultural aspects are different from the continental nations of Western Europe, and it exercises a rather effective control over the labor market and migrant workers.

In response to the inquiry of the Commissioner, the UK Embassy in Ukraine informed that 8,825 persons visited the country for education, 40 for medical treatment, 963 for employment, and 8,627 for agricultural work (with allowance for the forecast for 2002) in the period from 2000 to 2002 (first six months).

As the embassy informed the Commissioner, the main problems in issuing visas arise with persons who pose as eager students of English who want to study it under short-term visas. More often than not they intend to work illegally in the UK. Women advertise themselves on the Internet in the hope of finding husbands, and when they succeed they leave their Internet partners. Some of these women informed that they suffered abuse by their partners in the UK and asked to be returned home.

A UK employer who wants to hire a Ukrainian citizen has to file an application with Work Permits, UK. Since the UK needs highly skilled workers, a concession was granted not so long ago, under which highly skilled workers from other countries can be admitted to the UK without any work permits. Applications are filed with the visa department of the UK Embassy and then forwarded to Work Permits, UK, where the final decision is made.

As the Ukrainian Embassy in the UK informed, a much more complicated situation arises when Ukrainians enter the country for employment. As a rule, they lack knowledge of the language, conditions of residence, requirements of the labor market, and money. Frequently they enter with forged documents or without any documents at all. Fearing to apply to local bodies of authority or consular posts, they can fall an easy prey to all sorts of shady dealers and criminals.

The main bulk of Ukrainian citizens who do not have properly issued permits work in hotels, on construction sites, at poultry farms, and harvest strawberries.

A typical practice in the UK is the work of students. Under British laws persons who entered the country to study on the basis of a respective visa have the right to work up to 20 hours a week without a permit. However, in reality this time limit is not adhered to and students, from Ukraine included, run into conflict with the UK migration service and, now and then, are deported.

FRANCE. Owing to the fact that France exercises remarkably effective control over migration processes on its territory and employers are strictly accountable for using illegal labor, the number of illegally employed Ukrainians in France is negligible. As the Ukrainian Embassy in France informed, 236 Ukrainian citizens (mostly illegal migrant workers) were deported from the country in the period from 2000 to 2002 [first six months]).

The embassy stated that this category of citizens do not trust Ukrainian diplomatic missions and turn to their assistance only in emergencies.

In the overwhelming number of cases, Ukrainian migrant workers do not know the French language, neither do they realize what problems they have to grapple with, and in their attempts to integrate into society they associate mainly with illegal migrants, remaining in the end strangers in the eyes of French citizens.

As far as social and legal aspects are concerned, the “illegals” are the most vulnerable category of persons, because they are not insured, lack means of subsistence, and are under constant threat of arrest and deportation. Such an environment breeds a lot of violations, deaths, and psychological disorders. In crisis situations, specifically in case of loss of documents, theft, illness, or death, their country of origin, Ukraine, is the only one they can rely on to resolve their vitally important problems. An ever-growing number of complaints are filed with the Ukrainian consular post in France, but it is impossible to provide even minimal financial assistance to those who need it.

According to the information of the Ukrainian Embassy in France, there have been no registered cases of law enforcement bodies having violated the legal rules and provisions of international law concerning this category of Ukrainian citizens. In the period from 2000 to 2002, the Commissioner did not receive a single complaint about violations of Ukrainian migrant workers’ rights in France.

SWEDEN. In this country, the presence of Ukrainian migrant workers is negligible. But in the light of the Scandinavian countries acceding to the Schengen Treaty in March 2001, this problem might gain actuality.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Sweden informed that most Ukrainian migrant workers travel to Sweden to engage in seasonal work. Lacking an elementary knowledge of employment requirements, they suffer from the whims of local employers who avoid signing contracts stipulating, in part, the amount of monthly wages, conditions of travel and lodging, duration of a working day, and the like. As a result, Ukrainian citizens learn about the real conditions of their job only after they arrive at the working place, which causes a lot of misunderstanding.

Information about employment opportunities abroad is spread, as a rule, by intermediary agencies or even simply by private persons who bear no responsibility for the consequences of their activity. Intermediaries also draw up the visa documents, thereby substantially increasing their cost (up to US $200 and more against the actual cost of US $26-30).

During a meeting with representatives of Sweden’s migration service, when the Commissioner was on an official visit to the Kingdom of Sweden in April 2002, it was stated that more and more Ukrainian citizens apply to government agencies of Scandinavian countries, especially Sweden and Norway, to be granted political asylum (in this context Norway, although it is not a EU member).

NORWAY. Regardless of how the would-be asylum seekers enter the country – legally or illegally, with or without documents (frequently intentionally destroying or hiding them), poor knowledge or total lack of knowledge of foreign languages – they nonetheless file applications for asylum precisely in Norway. This can be explained by two main reasons: the liberal attitude of the immigration authorities, and the “loopholes” in Norwegian immigration practices. Until recently such applicants were paid 400 Norwegian Krones (US $50) a week while their applications were under consideration.

Potential job seekers have to submit to a Norwegian embassy abroad an application for a work permit. Either because of lack of knowledge of such a procedure or, perhaps, disregard of it, the job seekers travel to Norway direct or through other countries of the Schengen zone.

At the present time the Norwegian immigration authorities are concentrating their efforts to reduce as much as possible the time for considering applications for asylum. As the Norwegian party informed, the time was reduced from 15 months to an average of 11 weeks. For all that, Norwegian authorities cannot refuse accepting such applications.

As the Norwegian Immigration Authority informed, to regularize the problem of potential job seekers in Norway, measures will be taken shortly to design a program for the employment of Ukrainian citizens, which would provide for singling out Ukrainian migrant workers from among the asylum seekers.

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