Every fifth able-bodied Ukrainian works abroad
The voluminous report by Verkhovna Rada Human Rights Ombudsperson Nina Karpachova presented in the parliament on April 2 is full of similar life stories which, unlike this one, ended tragically. The Day has dedicated much ink to Ukrainians abroad. Suffice it to recall the items about sailors from the Funda steamer or Serhiy Kudria shot and killed by a Polish policeman. During the past two years, 500 Ukrainians were reported dead in Portugal alone, let alone occupational injuries which, according to Nina Karpachova, are concealed from everyone by crippled workers who do not know their rights. If a migrant dies, local police are not all that eager to investigate the possible cause of death. To illustrate, quite recently the death of a Ukrainian girl in Greece was classified as suicide by Greek police who did not even bother to investigate the case. Moreover, if relatives do not identify the body soon (in some countries during 24 hours) the usual practice is to use it for research purposes.
Ukrainian migrant laborers’ working conditions are like being in a war zone. It is no accident that many families send their relatives abroad as if to war. Research suggests that two-thirds of migrants work ten hours and some even eighteen hours a day doing backbreaking jobs. They live in trailers or cramped rooms accommodating up to fifteen persons. Fearing discovery and deportation, they often leave home only at the night. Understandably, as illegal workers they do not seek assistance from consulates even when in trouble. Research suggests that a mere 11.6% of migrant workers sign a written employment contract with employers, who break the contracts in one-fourth of all cases. For example, there were numerous cases in Greece when, after working for a year, migrants did not receive a cent. And recently a woman appealed to the ombudsperson after her friends brought news from the Czech Republic that her son had been severely beaten there and denied medical care. And this is happening because the law in many countries does not stipulate the right to medical assistance for foreigners residing in the country temporarily. This situation could be changed by bilateral agreements with the countries where there are the most Ukrainians, but for this so-called migration parity is required. Considering the fact that our relations with Europe in this respect are mostly unilateral, such attempts have little chance of success.
On the one hand, the facts produced by the Ombudsperson are no surprise to anyone. On the other, according to various expert estimates, two to seven million Ukrainians are currently employed abroad. The disparity in figures is due to the lack of monitoring and inaccurate information from certain agencies. To illustrate, according to the State Border Committee, in 2000-2002 only 105 Ukrainians emigrated to Portugal. By contrast, according to the Portuguese mass media, registration offices in Portugal cite the figure of 200,000 Ukrainians. Most of them went it to Portugal as tourists.
Incidentally, according to unofficial statistics, 85% of all migrants leave Ukraine this way. Travel agencies take care of tourist visas and tell their clients something like, “You’re traveling as a tourist; we’ll take care of your employment.” Oleksiy from Poltava oblast was told this when going to work in Italy. Having paid $800 for the services of the travel agency, he ended up in a foreign land with neither money nor work. According to Ms. Karpachova, common are cases when Ukrainians fall prey to compatriots abroad who demand payment “for using the territory.” Understandably, an illegal worker being blackmailed will not seek police assistance because of the risk of being deported. Evidence of the thriving “tourist” business is the fact that in the past two years half of the 749 firms offering employment abroad have had their licenses cancelled.
However, every fifth able-bodied Ukrainian is currently working abroad. Data from a poll conducted by the Opportunities for Women Center suggest that people are forced to migrate by low pay (52.8%), unemployment (31.7%), and the need to repay debts (29.7%). A Ukrainian girl working in Greece told the Ukrainian Ombudsperson point blank: “If I were paid at least UAH 200 per month in Ukraine I would never have gone where they humiliate me.”
