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CRUSHED HOPES: Underemployment and Deskilling Among Skilled Migrant Women

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CRUSHED HOPES: Underemployment and Deskilling Among Skilled Migrant Women CRUSHED HOPES: Underemployment and deskilling among skilled migrant women International Organization for Migration (IOM) The opinions expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout the report do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IOM concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning its frontiers or boundaries. _______________ IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society. As an intergovernmental organization, IOM acts with its partners in the international community to: assist in meeting the operational challenges of migration; advance understanding of migration issues; encourage social and economic development through migration; and uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants. Publisher: International Organization for Migration 17, route des Morillons 1211 Geneva 19 Switzerland Tel: + 41 22 717 91 11 Fax: + 41 22 798 61 50 E-mail: [email protected] Internet: www.iom.int _______________ © 2012 International Organization for Migration (IOM) _______________ All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher. 51_12 CRUSHED HOPES: Underemployment and deskilling among skilled migrant women International Organization for Migration (IOM) ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The International Organization for Migration (IOM) wishes to thank the following individuals for their contributions at various stages of the project; first and foremost, the authors of the cases studies: Dr. Sondra Cuban, Ms. Hélène Cardu, Dr. Luisa Marin de Avellan and Ms. Blandine Mollard, as well as Ms. Sanober Umar for her extensive work on the literature review. Special thanks within IOM are due to Ms. Sylvia Lopez-Ekra, the Gender Coordinator, for her extensive support throughout the process, to Mr. Guglielmo Schininà, for his guidance and availability, to Ms. Christine Aghazarm, Research Officer, for her assistance and enthusiasm, and to Ms. Maegan Hendow for her research assistance. With regard to the Geneva case study in particular, IOM would like to acknowledge the overwhelming support received from the staff of Découvrir, an association for qualified migrant women, especially Ms. Rocio Restrepo, Ms. Massia Kaneman and Ms. Maria Saldana Rossel, who, thanks to the time and energy they contributed to the project, were instrumental in the outreach to study participants and in the quality of the interviews. The authors would like to thank the following professionals and institutions for the time they took to answer questions and to provide useful resources either in face-to-face discussions or over the telephone: Ms. Chokoufeh Samii and Ms. Brunella Colombelli from F-Information, Ms. Fatima de Souza from the Syndicat Interprofessionnel des Travailleurs, Ms. Betty Goguikian-Radcliff from Appartenances, Mr. Alfredo Camelo from Pluriels, Ms. Arlette Barbezat from the Cantonal Office for Employment, Mr. Cyrille Salort, Director of the Continuous Learning Service of the Cantonal Office for Orientation, Professional Training and Continuous Learning, Ms. Daniela Bertossa from Femmes et Emploi and Ms. Luiza Vasconcelos and Ms. Anne Saturno from the Cantonal Service for Gender Equality. The following individuals are also to be thanked for their help in identifying study participants and announcing the study among their members and networks: Ms. Janine Moser from Camarada, Ms. Anne-Claude Gerber, from Entraide Protestante Suisse, Ms. Lobna Elouaar and Ms. Liliana Ruiz from Tierra Incognita, Mr. Ivar Petterson from Solidarité Bosnie, Ms. Albana Krasniqi from the Université Populaire Albanaise, Mr. Christophe de Wilem from Caritas and Ms. Anne Nouspikel from the Hospice général. Crushed Hopes: Underemployment and Deskilling among Skilled Migrant Women 3 Lastly, this note of thanks would not be complete without acknowledging the financial support received for the Geneva research from the Cantonal Bureau for the Integration of Foreigners, for which we would like to warmly thank Ms. Fabienne Bugnon, Director of the Office for Human Rights, Mr. André Castella, Delegate for the Integration of Foreigners in the Canton of Geneva, and Ms. Catherine Salla, former Project Officer in the Cantonal Bureau for the Integration of Foreigners. 4 Introduction FOREWORD The situation of women in international migration flows has gained significant attention in migration studies and public debate over the past few years. In particular, the fact that women increasingly choose migration as a strategy, both independently and as part of a family, is evidence of their improved level of autonomy worldwide. Nevertheless, although they are more present than ever among people on the move, enjoying greater access to higher education and often being very skilled, women are still underrepresented within the most sought-after professions such as business management, engineering and information technologies. In turn, women dominate in professions linked to social reproduction such as health, education and culture. The skills attached to such social reproduction professions are unfortunately less valued on the labour market; thus, these skills tend also to be less transferable from one country to another, with the result that qualified women are often unable to apply their skills and find appropriate employment after they relocate. This phenomenon of highly qualified migrants being pushed into underemploy- ment or lower-skilled occupations, with the risk of losing their skills, is a reality with strong negative economic and social implications for migrants themselves and also for host and home countries. This deskilling is also a manifestation of the stiff barriers that remain to the mobility of people and talents. Through a broad review of literature on the gender dimension of deskilling and case studies from Quebec, Geneva and the United Kingdom, this publication intends to illustrate the professional setbacks that can derive from migration for qualified women and the far-reaching impact such losses may have on their well-being, sense of identity and family relationships. I am confident that the analysis of the economic and social implications presented in this report will contribute to advance the international debate on skilled migration. I also hope that the interesting findings of this work will be used by various actors, including migrants’ associations, to advocate for improved integration systems likely to better tap into the skills and experience of migrant women. Crushed Hopes: Underemployment and Deskilling among Skilled Migrant Women 5 However, this study must be seen as the starting point of a more comprehensive effort to comprehend the long-term consequences of migration on women’s empowerment and personal development in countries of destination. With a stronger understanding of the social dynamics involved in migration, the international community can then rightly address the needs of women migrants and enhance their contribution to their host and home communities. William Lacy Swing IOM Director General 6 Foreword TaBLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................3 Foreword ..................................................................................................................5 Chapter 1 Gender, migration and deskilling – A broad review of the literature .......................9 Introduction ............................................................................................................11 Gender and deskilling in migration studies ............................................................12 Are women disproportionately affected by deskilling? ..........................................19 What is keeping skilled migrant women away from qualified jobs? ......................23 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................28 References ..............................................................................................................29 Chapter 2 “I don’t want to be stuck as a carer”: The effects of deskilling in the livelihoods and opportunities of migrant care workers in England ..............37 Introduction ............................................................................................................39 Literature review of research on migrants in England’s care sector .......................41 Methodology: Research design, sample, data collection and data analysis ...........45 Findings ..................................................................................................................54 Recommendations..................................................................................................68 References ..............................................................................................................73 Chapter 3 The psychosocial impact of underemployment in the lives of skilled migrant women working in Geneva, Switzerland: An empirical study ...................77 Introduction ............................................................................................................79
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