SIRIUS Project Consortium published the first Policy briefing this September

SIRIUS Project Consortium published the first Policy briefing this September

The consortium of the project SIRIUS, that aims to promote refugees’ and asylum seekers’ integration via the labour market, have published this September the first policy briefing and the report and results of its first work package report.

According to the policy briefing, the integration of migrant refugees and asylum seekers via labour markets is not a straightforward task, due to the specific issues relating to migration and refugee/asylum statuses, but also due to the extent of heterogeneity apparent across contemporary labour markets in Europe. This heterogeneity (in economic structure, sectorial composition, labour force and demographic features, etc.), combined with the substantial, but also uneven, the impact of the wider economic crisis on European labour markets, has created a highly differentiated economic and social environment across countries. In the policy brief is presented the evidence and policy considerations about the ‘macro’ dimensions of integration by scrutinizing the characteristics of post-2014 migrant refugees and asylum seekers along with the economic drivers of the SIRIUS economies (the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Italy, the United Kingdom and Switzerland) and their labour markets determinants.

The main objectives of the project are:

• providing systematic evidence on post-2014 migrants, refugees and asylum applicants
• advancing knowledge on the complexity of labour market integration for post-2014 migrants, refugees and asylum applicants, and exploring their integration potential by looking into their spatial distribution
• advancing a theoretical framework for an inclusive integration agenda, outlining an optimal mix of policy pathways for labour market integration.

SOLIDAR’s members are continuously promoting labour market inclusion as one of the main sources of integration. SOLIDAR also underlines the need of encouraging the recognition of refugees’ and asylum seekers’ skills beyond the borders, for a more inclusive labour market and a fairer access to professions. Moreover, SOLIDAR and its members highlight the need to consider the refugees as having social rights just like the other citizens of host countries.