Context: About 49 Indian migrant workers died in a fire in a six-storey building in Kuwait where they lived. This accident has again brought attention to the deplorable living condition and lack of safety of Indian migrant workers in destination countries.
Kerala Migration Survey 2023 estimates that 2.2 million people from the state have migrated with 80% of them residing in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
Benefits of migrant workers
- Migrants workers are a large source of foreign remittances contributing more than $100 bn to Indian economy every year.
- Migrants’ workers experience social mobility and the contributions they send allow their families to live a life of dignity.
- Migrant workers allow India to harness its demographic dividend and leads to address the issue of unemployment of large youth population in India.
- Migration allows India workers to get higher wages as compared to what they get when they can garner in India leading to higher productivity.
- The advanced skills that migrant workers learn in while working abroad also come to India when they come back leading to increased productivity in India as well.
- International allows India to emerge as the important source of human capital for the world, particularly for countries undergoing rapid ageing. This will increase India's strategic, soft and hard power at the world level.
Reasons for Vulnerability of Migrant Workers in Gulf Countries
- Lack of data on migrants - both at their origin and destination countries especially for those employed in the low-skill, low-paying job profiles leading to grave invisibilisation of the migrants.
- Majority of the migrant workers work in the un-organised sector such as construction sites and factories often facing dangerous working conditions.
- Migrants in Gulf countries do not have option of permanent residency, they are not given adequately protected and have few rights leading to exploitation of migrant workers in these countries
- Live in dingy living spaces and cramped dormitories
- Lack of any social security for the migrant community.
- Migrant workers employed in low end jobs lack savings, have limited resources and lack any social connections of family and friends accentuating their vulnerability.
- Often there are complaints of employers in foreign countries capture the passports of migrant workers.
- Lack of regulation of agencies involved in the supply chain of migration of workers to gulf countries.
- Enacting the revamped Emigration Act, 1983 on the lines of draft Emigration Bill, 2021 to modernise the foreign migration ecosystem of India.
Way Forward
- There is a need for study the conditions of Indian migrant workers in India and their destination country and establish a national level database to understand the various sections from India. Thus, a survey like the Kerala Migration Survey should be done on a national level.
- India should enter into bilateral social security agreements with the major destination countries migrant workers from India, this will ensure adequate social security and dignified life for Indian migrant workers.
- Indian embassies in major destination countries should actively try to map and educate the Indian migrant workers particularly those employed in low end jobs.
- Mapping of skills and demand for various skills and train Indian workforce in those skills.