In The News

Perceptions of Migration Clash With Reality, Report Finds

Caroline Brothers December 27, 2011
A global migration report outlines the distorted perceptions of immigrants and suggests that misinformation contributes to “harmful stereotypes, discrimination and xenophobia.” For example, the Italians in surveys assume that immigrants make up 25 percent of the population, when the true figure is 7 percent. Immigrants are wrongly scapegoated for unemployment, scarcity of public resources, crime...

Why Can't Europeans Get Along?

Pankaj Ghemawat December 9, 2011
Forging strong trade connections enriched the European economy, but administrative measures alone did not ensure economic or political integration, cautions management professor Pankaj Ghemawat in an essay for Fortune. While short-term intervention is needed, he argues, Europe must also strive for cultural and political cohesion and build greater trust among 27 nations. He contrasts the EU with...

Help Wanted: In Unexpected Twist, Some Skilled Jobs Go Begging

Ben Casselman December 6, 2011
Industries are struggling to hire skilled workers for welding, wiring, drill-rigging and machine-work, but such abilities may be vanishing in the United States. “Data show the skills gap doesn't exist in whole industries but in specific jobs, including certain heavy-duty blue-collar ones,” reports Ben Casselman in an article for the Wall Street Journal. The shortages have boosted pay rates...

Plugging the Brain Drain

Huang Shaojie December 5, 2011
A tough stance on immigration in the US could play into China’s hands and keep more talented Chinese workers at home. “The US quota system for skilled worker immigrants provides a maximum of 9800 ‘green cards’ a year to citizens of any one nation,” reports Huang Shaojie of China’s Global Times. More than 100,000 Chinese students study in the US, and of course, the quota system puts the world’s...

The Magic of Diasporas

November 23, 2011
Citizens in troubled economies like the US and Europe are increasingly lashing out against immigration. Such blame is misplaced. Fears about depressed wages, stretched benefit programs and brain drain are exaggerated, suggests this article in the Economist, and governments must do a better job of educating voters about “the growing economic importance of diasporas, and the contribution they can...

Foreign Workers Welcome, But No Permanent Residents, Please

Philip Bowring November 11, 2011
With rapid economic growth comes the need for new sources of labor, particularly for jobs that citizens no longer care to do. So, wealthy places like Hong Kong or Singapore turn to Bangladesh, the Philippines and other neighboring states for temporary migrant help, unskilled or low-skilled, in households, restaurants or construction sites. In particular, temporary immigration is on the rise, and...

The Shadow Superpower

Robert Neuwirth November 10, 2011
The world has a significant informal economy, employing half the world’s workforce and estimated to be worth $10 trillion, excluding blatantly illegal activities. The so-called System D, slang from French-speaking Africa and the Caribbean, can no longer go ignored by policymakers, argues Robert Neuwirth for Foreign Policy. The actions of street vendors, barterers, garage sale operators, impromptu...