IRRI-KIIB expert seminar:
“The Global Governance of International Migration: a Belgian Perspective”
Brussels, Egmont Palace, 12 June 2006

Panel III
 
Private-sector perspective
Caroline Ven
 
The three key challenges facing our economy are EU enlargement, globalisation and the ageing population. Migration lies at the crossroads of these three issues.
 
I’ll approach migration from the point of view of employment and the labour market.
When assessing migration, we have to find a balance on the labour market. We should focus on new migrants and on those who already live in Belgium. We should also assess our approach to unemployment.
 
Firstly, there is no denying that Belgium has a high rate of unemployment and a low activity ratio. Secondly, there is a long list of vacant positions in the so-called 'bottleneck professions'. Here, migration could be a solution, but given the current unemployment and activity ratio I can assure you that migration is not the only answer to our economic and social challenges. Thirdly, Europe's Lisbon goals state that we should become the most competitive knowledge-based economy and create more jobs by 2010. Since we need to meet those requirements, we have to take measures to fill certain vacancies.
 
Continuing our discussion of migration policy, recent studies show that one of the obstacles to foreign investments is the hassle of obtaining work permits. Multiple factors are at play here and we face a combination of economic, political and humanitarian challenges.
 
I would like to focus on two key topics.
 
The first one is FEB's position on migration and the second is the matter of collateral measures - because we don’t think that immigration is sufficient to meet all these targets.
 
When it comes to migration, we want legislation that is more flexible so that work permits are easier to secure - especially for technically skilled and so-called 'bottleneck jobs'. These jobs are simply not being filled, and that is a loss for our economy. Our government has decided to extend certain restrictions on workers from Eastern Europe.
 
Now, simply obtaining a work permit is not enough. The procedures should also be made more flexible. We are thinking about the option of setting up a 'one-stop shop': a single place where all permits can be obtained. This would simplify life for many migrants and companies.
 
So, what is the European approach to immigration policy? This is a question of subsidiarity. It is up to the states to decide how many migrants they need and what qualifications they should have. Still, progress could be made at European level by facilitating intra-European mobility. If someone from outside the EU is hired by a multinational, it is sometimes difficult to transfer that same person to another EU country; the amount of red tape can be daunting.
 
Where collective measures are concerned, we need an active and proactive anti-racism and anti-discrimination policy. We oppose quotas of any kind. Positive discrimination is not a solution. We need to spread the message that we should open up to other cultures, races and so on. As a professional association, we issued a statement a couple of years ago, together with the regional employers’ organisations: VOKA, UWE and VOB. We appealed to employers to give non-indigenous workers more opportunities. A couple of weeks ago, the FEB president launched an appeal for diversification at the workplace, since it creates added value for our society.
 
Then there is the fight against illegal immigration. FEB does not want companies competing simply on the basis of the fact that some of them don’t follow the social security rules. Illegal immigration cannot be solved by stopping immigration, but human trafficking and illegal immigration should be fought at border crossings. Combating extreme poverty is very important, since it is often one of the causes of economic migration.
 
We need more efforts in the field of education and training, not just for immigrants, but also for migrants already living in our country and for employers as well. Such training should be focused on the precise needs of the labour market. Unemployed people should be given guidance to help them find jobs.
 
Finally, labour mobility should be increased within Belgium and the European single market. That is what freedom of movement within the EU really means.
 
These are a few thoughts on migration from the viewpoint of the labour market and employers associations.
 
Thank you.