Old Europe keeps door closed for Romanian and Bulgarian workers

Romanians and Bulgarians are still not seen as full-fledged citizens of the European Union. Many member states continue to keep them out of their job markets, particularly now the economy is in recession.

A large number of European countries, including the Netherlands, will not allow Romanians and Bulgarians access to their job markets for the time being, says a European Commission review published on Thursday. The EU member states are worried about the loss of job opportunities and they are using the current financial crisis as an argument for protecting their job markets for longer than agreed. "First we have to protect jobs for our own workers," British immigration minister Phil Woolas said in a statement.

Old Europe

When Poland entered the EU in 2004 and Romania and Bulgaria in 2007, the EU member states agreed on a transitional phase in the free movement of workers. East Europeans would be able to travel freely and be self-employed throughout the EU but would need a work permit to take a permanent job. This agreement was lifted for Polish workers in most member states in 2007. Spain, Portugal, Greece, Hungary and Denmark will open their job markets to Romanians and Bulgarians in 2009.

Most EU states which are keeping their job markets (partly) closed are in 'old Europe'. Countries like Great Britain, France and Italy. The Dutch social affairs minister Piet Hein Donner (Christian Democrat) has also decided to keep the borders closed because of uncertainty in the economic downturn. A parliamentary majority supported him.

All EU member states will have to fully open their borders to Romanians and Bulgarians in 2012, unless there is evidence of a 'serious disruption' to the job market. Until then there are considerable differences in each country's restrictions. Many countries open their job markets in sectors with a shortage of workers, like agriculture and horticulture. The Dutch parliament is worried about increasing unemployment in sectors suffering from the financial situation, like construction and industry.

Unfounded

The fear that the arrival of Romanians and Bulgarians will lead to extra job losses is unfounded, says the European Commission on the basis of research. Economic migrants from countries which joined the EU in 2004 and 2007, such as Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, have not led to serious disruption of the job markets in other EU countries. In fact they have contributed to economic growth without pushing out local workers or depressing wages, says the Commission. It is encouraging countries to remove the restrictions as soon as possible.

In the Netherlands too the effects of economic migration from Eastern Europe are "on average marginal", says Arjan Heyma of Amsterdam research agency SEO which researches the impact of East Europeans on the Dutch economy. "Only in agriculture is there evidence of a slight depression in wages," he says.

Even the 'flood' of Romanians and Bulgarians which political parties fear is unlikely. Look at the Poles, says Heyma. "The largest group of Poles was already here before the restrictions were lifted." If Romanians and Bulgarians following this pattern, a small number can be expected when the job market is opened, but they will be far fewer than the number who arrived after accession to the EU, which was limited in the Netherlands anyway.

The closed job market for Romanians and Bulgarians plays into exploitation, says Gerlof Roubos, director of the association of international employment agencies. "The crisis puts pressure on prices in the temporary employment world. It's then attractive to hire cheap (illegal) Romanians and Bulgarians," he says.