Immigration and the Welfare State in Spain
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Social Studies Collection No. 31 The present study addresses the complex relationship between immigration and the welfare state in Spain. The number of immigrants in Spain has greatly increased in recent years, reaching levels similar to those found in the most developed countries in the European Union. Spain’s transformation into a host country for immigrants took place in times of vigorous economic growth and employment, a period of economic boom to which immigrants contributed decisively. The collapse of this long phase of Immigration and the Welfare growth has made immigration much more visible, and in particular, has sharpened debate on the impact of immigration on Spain’s 3State1 in Spain social protection system. This book aims to provide authoritative information on immigrants’ access to and use of welfare state benefits and services, but also on Francisco Javier Moreno Fuentes their contribution to financing the welfare state. With this data, the authors analyze the implications of immigration on the economic and María Bruquetas Callejo social sustainability of the welfare state in Spain, underscoring the role that the immigrant population has played in bringing to light the strengths and weaknesses of the social protection system. WELFARE PROJECTS. THE SPIRIT OF ”la Caixa”. Social Studies Collection No. 31 Immigration and the Welfare State in Spain Francisco Javier Moreno Fuentes María Bruquetas Callejo Published by ”la Caixa” Welfare Projects Governing Bodies of ”la Caixa” Welfare Projects WELFARE PROJECTS COMMITTEE Chairman Isidro Fainé Casas Members Salvador Gabarró Serra, Jorge Mercader Miró, Javier Godó Muntañola, Montserrat Cabra Martorell, Aina Calvo Sastre, Juan José López Burniol, Montserrat López Ferreres, Justo Bienvenido Novella Martínez Secretary (non trustee) Alejandro García-Bragado Dalmau Deputy Secretary (non trustee) Óscar Calderón de Oya Managing Director of ”la Caixa” Juan María Nin Génova Executive Director of ”la Caixa” Jaime Lanaspa Gatnau Welfare Projects BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE ”LA CAIXA” FOUNDATION Chairman Isidro Fainé Casas Honorary Chairman José Vilarasau Salat 1st Deputy Chairman Ricardo Fornesa Ribó Deputy Chairman Salvador Gabarró Serra, Jordi Mercader Miró, Juan Maria Nin Génova Trustees Victòria Barber Willems, María Teresa Bartolomé Gil, Maria Teresa Bassons Boncompte, Montserrat Cabra Martorell, Aina Calvo Sastre, José Francisco de Conrado i Villalonga, Javier Godó Muntañola, Josep-Delfí Guàrdia Canela, Monika Habsburg Lothringen, Inmaculada Juan Franch, Jaime Lanaspa Gatnau, Juan-José López Burniol,Montserrat López Ferreres, Dolors Llobet Maria, Rosa Maria Mora Valls, Miquel Noguer Planas, Justo Bienvenido Novella Martínez, Jordi Portabella Calvete, Leopoldo Rodés Castañé, Javier Solana Madariaga, Roberto Tapia Conyer, Nuria Esther Villalba Fernández, Josep-Francesc Zaragozà Alba Managing Director Jaime Lanaspa Gatnau Secretary (non trustee) Alejandro García-Bragado Dalmau Deputy Secretary (non trustee) Óscar Calderón de Oya Publication Immigration and the Welfare State in Spain Design and production ”la Caixa” Welfare Projects Publication Authors Francisco Javier Moreno Fuentes and María Bruquetas Callejo Translated by Jed Rosenstein Design and layout CEGE Coordination of publication: Fellowship Programs and Social Studies © Francisco Javier Moreno Fuentes, The opinions expressed in the documents in María Bruquetas Callejo this collection are the sole responsibility of © ”la Caixa” Welfare Projects the authors and do not necessarily reflect those Av. Diagonal, 621 - 08028 Barcelona of the ”la Caixa” Foundation. FRANCISCO JAVIER MORENO FUENTES is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Public Goods and Policies of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). He has a PhD in Political Science from the Autonomous University of Madrid and the Juan March Institute. He has been a professor at the University of Barcelona and a visiting researcher at the London School of Economics, Harvard University and the Institut d’Études Politiques in Paris. His primary areas of interest are related to the comparative analysis of public policies in the area of welfare regimes, immigration and urban policy. His doctoral thesis was published by the Spanish Economic and Social Council, and he is the author of many texts published in collective works as well as articles published in Spanish (Política y Sociedad,Documentación Social, Revista Española del Tercer Sector) and international journals (Politics & Society, Hagar, Pôle Sud). MARÍA BRUQUETAS CALLEJO is a professor in the Political Science Department of the University of Amsterdam, and she has a PhD from the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (IMES) from this university. Her doctoral thesis was on the implementation of welcome policies for immigrant students in the school environment. She is a member of the IMISCOE Research Network which brings together experts and researchers on migratory phenomena and the social integration of immigrant populations in receiving societies. She has specialized primarily in the study of processes for the development and implementation of immigrant integration policies with particular attention on the sphere of education, as well as on the connections between the welfare state and the integration of immigrant groups. Contents Presentation 11 I. Introduction 13 II. Principal characteristics of the welfare state and migration in Spain 20 2.1. The welfare state and the integration of immigrants 20 2.2. Main characteristics of the Spanish welfare state 25 2.3. Main characteristics of immigration in Spain 30 2.4. Immigration and the labour market 41 2.5. Conclusions 46 III. The access of immigrants to social benefits 48 3.1. Citizenship and social rights 48 3.2. Deservingness and rights of access to welfare regimes 50 3.3. The access of immigrants to social protection systems 52 3.4. Conclusions 78 IV. Immigration, inequality and equity 79 4.1. Factors explaining inequalities 79 4.2. Managing diversity 81 4.3. Inequalities and equity policies 86 4.4. Conclusions 113 V. The role of immigration in the provision of care 115 5.1. Crisis in the family caregiving model 116 5.2. Caregiving policies and markets 120 5.3. Immigrant women and the caregiving sector 123 5.4. Conclusions 129 VI. The impact of immigration on the financial and social sustainability of the welfare state 131 6.1. Immigration and the financial sustainability of the welfare regime 131 6.2. Immigration and the social sustainability of the welfare regime 147 6.3. Conclusions 161 VII. Conclusions: The challenges and opportunities immigration poses for the welfare state 164 7.1. General conclusions 164 7.2. Challenges for the future 167 Bibliography 175 Index of graphs and tables 189 Presentation Immigration is one of the social and demographic phenomena that has most transformed Spanish society in the last two decades. Currently, foreigners constitute approximately 12% of the population of Spain, a proportion similar to that found in European countries with a long tradition as recipients of migration flows. The increase in the number of immigrants has been the result of sustained economic growth, and this influx of workers from other countries, both men and women, has provided plentiful, flexible and relatively cheap labour in sectors such as construction, agriculture and services. It is also noteworthy that this sociodemographic transformation has taken place up until now without significant social tension or conflict. However, this situation may be changing since the onset of the serious economic crisis which began in Spain in 2007 with its corresponding dramatic increase in unemployment, budget cuts and cuts in social services. In this context, some sectors of Spanish society have begun to question not only the arrival of new immigrants, but the role of those already present and their impact on the welfare state and its future sustainability. These types of debates, too often based on prejudices or stereotypes not supported by the evidence, demand rigorous and objective analysis based on empirical data. It is in just such a context that this study acquires special importance. In its analysis of immigration and its relationship to the welfare state, the present study provides data and reflection in three respects. First, the authors examine immigrants’ access to and use of the health care and education systems and social services, highlighting inequalities affecting immigrant groups which should be the object of policies aimed at responding to the challenges of equality and equity. 11 Secondly, the authors analyze the contribution of immigrants to Spain’s social protection system, whether through their social security contributions and taxes or through their employment in the system for the provision of personal services and care, in which oftentimes working in an irregular situation, they help to resolve the difficulties of a welfare regime strained by social change caused by both an ageing population and the growing participation of women in the labour market. Based on this analysis, the authors raise the issue of the economic sustainability of the Spanish welfare state in the face of the challenges it must address in the future. Lastly, the study presents data on the evolution of attitudes in Spanish society toward immigrants, and in particular regarding the access of immigrants to social protection systems. This analysis, also using data from other neighbouring countries, offers indications of the risk of conflict as well as public support