Refugees need to have work to integrate, say MEPs

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) during their meeting here said Tuesday that refugees and asylum seekers must be able to work in their host countries in order to facilitate their rapid integration and enable them to contribute to the development of society.

Following the arrival on the European continent last year of nearly one million people fleeing conflict and poverty, and with the European Union (EU) torn for months on the issue of migration, setting a comprehensive policy of welcoming refugees is still urgently needed, MEPs insisted in a non-binding resolution adopted by a large majority.

Allowing refugees and asylum seekers to work in their host countries would not only help to restore their human dignity, but also reduce strain on public budgets by turning them into taxpayers, the resolution declared.

"We are asking for more resources for European social policy," the text's author Italian socialist MEP Brando Benifi said at a press conference following the vote.

"The integration of those who find international protection, which is an obligation of solidarity towards people fleeing war or whose lives are at risk, should be conducted so that it does not create social dumping, intolerance or social division in the host countries," added Benifi.

Against a background of economic crisis, the rise of populism and increased racism, social inclusion schemes should therefore aim to be a "dynamic, two-way process between refugees and host communities, in which all partners have rights and duties," the resolution stated.

At the same time, the fight against all forms of discrimination, xenophobia and racism should be strengthened, it added.

The resolution called in particular for changes to current legislation on refugees' access to the labor market. "We propose access to the job market within six months rather than nine now; a period which is not always respected by the EU Member States," said Benifi, highlighting differences between asylum procedures in member states. Specific realities of job markets in host countries must also be taken into account.

MEPs were opposed to the idea of creating specific job markets for refugees and were in favor of applying minimum wage laws in those states where they exist. At the same time, MEPs recommended that member states should offer a job-language training system, closely linking general and vocational language training, as well as access to orientation courses on fundamental EU rights and values. Endit