The commodification of migrant labour in Europe and the Western Balkans

::: spoiler Summary

• ‘Circular labour mobility schemes’ managed by development agencies and private consultancies are putting more people into precarious and exploitative positions.
• These systems see people brought into European countries – often after they pay significant up-front costs – to fill labour vacancies with minimal protections and visas tied to their employment.
• People are often denied the chance to settle and their ability to access their rights limited.
• The Balkans have increasingly benefitted from such circular labour schemes—yet local reporting of worker abuse and discrimination shows clearly how exploitation is built into the system. :::

European migration policy supports mobility so long as it bolsters European states’ economies, but not enough to let people settle. The result is an exploitative system, cloaked in bureaucratic language, that denies migrant workers their rights. This system can be seen ever more clearly across the Balkans.