• by Supachai Panitchpakdi
• Thursday, December 18, 2008
• Inter Press Service

As the global financial crisis evolves, more and more migrants will lose their jobs. Because migrants are a key component of the workforce in both developed and developing countries, addressing their plight is a major concern, writes Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

In Europe, the latest data indicate that migrants working in construction and consumer services have been packing up and leaving in droves in the past few weeks. About half the one million Eastern Europeans who moved to the United Kingdom since 2004 have returned home as jobs in construction and related sectors dry up.

In the United States, unemployment is at the highest level in 14 years, expected to reach 7%. It may surpass 11% before the end of the crisis. Not surprisingly, US officials report that illegal immigration is down 40% from 2005.

In China, factories are closing as export orders fall sharply. Nearly 10 million migrant workers have returned to their hometowns in the past six months. This will expand income inequality. This slowdown is spreading throughout Asia, as production supply chains are affected.

//NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN CANADA, NEW ZEALAND, CZECH REPUBLIC, IRELAND, POLAND, THE UNITED STATES, AND THE UNITED KINGDOM//

© Inter Press Service (2008) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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