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On the 17th of June, Kudwa hosted an informative virtual session on migratory policies and labor inclusion in Spain.
To start the session, Razan introduced Kudwa and its mission to activate the Arabic-speaking migrant community in Spain. Then, future projects and collaborations currently being worked on were presented, such as the MILE Project and Advozcat.
An essential part of the webinar was presenting the Advozcat project's policy report and Kudwa's recommendations. The findings of this policy report will be presented to local authorities regarding how the current policies have affected migrants' abilities to enter the workforce. These recommendations to policymakers and politicians include, for instance:
Issuing temporary or conditional work permits to qualified candidates while their applications are being processed.
Moving towards a points-based system where individual contributions to society can be considered.
Providing cultural training for immigration office staff and setting quotas for the employment of expatriates and immigrants in the public sector, especially bureaucratic processing and jobs in direct contact with immigrants.
It was also discussed how the lack of information of companies and organizations results in a lack of effort in going through the process and paperwork of recruiting migrant candidates for their vacant positions. Therefore, for companies, the recommendation's included, for instance, training HR staff in the bureaucratic procedures related to the recruitment of non-EU nationals (jointly with the Generalitat de Catalunya or local government bodies), adapting the selection and recruitment processes to be more inclusive and equitable.
For non-governmental organizations the recommendations included:
Hiring more migrants for management positions to create platforms through which migrants and refugees can be agents of change
Forming alliances between immigrant-led NGOs and civil society organizations and creating formal and informal support systems tailored to migrants and refugees.
Mobilizing resources from large NGOs to support immigrant-led organizations working on related issues from the labor market to housing rights.
Enhancing the role of these organizations as intermediaries providing information and assistance to migrants and refugees
Joining the session also was Nachaat Waes, a functionary at the Oficina de Extranjeria (the Immigration Office), an expert on migration regulation in Spain. Nachaat helped elaborate on some of the policies in practice for migrants in varying situations and answered the attendees' questions throughout the session.
You can watch the recording of the session on our Youtube channel
A discussion ensued after the intervention from Nachaat about the rights and obligations of migrants, particularly students.
Many of Kudwa’s members have managed to enter Spain as students. Though they were forced to flee their countries to avoid persecution or conflict, they often choose not to seek asylum due to the precarious nature of the refugee status in Spain, and because they do not want to burden the state, or they simply prefer to avoid being categorised as vulnerable.
Therefore, students' and Third Country Nationals' right to access the labor market, especially TCNs coming from countries ridden with conflict, violence, and poor economical situation, is a cause that we fight for constantly.
The whole session was highly interactive, and in the end, attendees shared and discussed their personal experiences. These discussions are vital for moving forward as we collect stories to present as case studies to influence relevant authorities and create tangible change in the system.
We would love to hear from you if you have a story about lack of access to labor market or any incidence of discrimination in the workplace!
You can find the information in the pdf below.
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