Conference on labour migration: the view of state, employers, trade unions and NGOs.

Association for Integration and Migration, Consortium of Migrants Assisting Organizations in the Czech Republic, Institute of Sociology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, representation in the CR organized the international double conference on November 27th in the space of Academic Conference Center.

The topic of the conference in the morning session was Migration as a commodity and alternative perspectives on migration, together with positions of migrants in industry. The afternoon session brought outputs of the international project of SIMI and under its auspices program devoted to the topic of cooperation between non-governmental sector and Labor Office. In the end of the day the new documentary film The Better Life was screened. The document was followed by the discussion about a position of economic migrants in the Czech Republic and in Europe.

Summary of outputs of the conference are available on server Migrace online

On November 27th 2012 the international double conference on “Economic migration: the view of state, employers, trade unions and NGOs” was organised in Academic Conference Center. The morning program of the conference was organised under the auspices of Consortium of Migrants Assisting Organizations in the Czech Republic, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Foundation and Institute of Sociology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. At first, invited experts thought about topic Migration as a commodity and alternative perspectives on migration. Also the director of SIMI Magda Faltová presented the view of non-governmental sector on newly prepared Aliens Act. After moderated discussion, the second panel was devoted to specific group of migrants working in industry.

The afternoon program of the conference was under the auspices of Association for Integration and Migration (SIMI) and summarized the international project „Increasing the role of non-governmental sector in the area of social integration of economic migrants in the Czech Republic” financed by ESF OP LZZ which is finishing after two years of realization in the end of December.

In the third panel the public was informed by the coordinator of project Eva Valentová about outputs and conclusions of the project followed by presentation of various possibilities of cooperation between non-governmental sector and government authorities in a case of dealing with integration of migrants. In addition to representatives from Ministry of the Interior, Labor Office in Ústí nad Labem and non-governmental organization META the examples of the good practice were presented by international partners in the project such as Portuguese organization Solidariedade Imigrante (SOLIM) and Austrian partnership organization Zentrum für MigrantInnen in Tirol (ZEMIT). The conference was finished with screening of the new documentary film “The Better Life” made by SIMI. The film was followed by discussion with guests from abroad.

According to attendance of public in discussions the double-conference was interesting for general public and successfully brought various perspectives on economic migration not only in the Czech Republic. The record from the action are available on Migrace online.

Evaluation of the international cooperation with NGOs from Austria and Portuguese

The conference was also a part of program of the final seminar in the international project where partners evaluated the process and results. The evaluation of representatives of partnership organizations SOLIM and ZeMiT was very positive in areas of partial results of the project, general organization, communication and leading of the project. Both partners were interested in the international cooperation but also in promoting our campaign which is aimed on household workers and propagation of the documentary film “The Better Life” in their countries. On the other side the practice from the area of integration of migrants in Austria and Portuguese will be presented in Czech radio 6´s broadcast Focused on foreigners.