Integration of beneficiaries of international protection in the Lithuanian labour market: policies and practices

Introduction

Since its independence in 1990, Lithuania has experienced, in common with its Baltic neighbours Estonia and Latvia, a veritable exodus of people, with, according to the latest statistics, an average of 30,000 people leaving the country every year. This substantial emigration following independence has seen many nationals moving to western and northern European countries, resulting in demographic challenges and structural changes. Following Lithuania’s accession to the EU in 2004, the exodus of nationals reached new heights. Together with a growing emigration trend, new migration patterns were identified as the demographic shortfall, combined with labour shortages, triggered immigration from third countries. Lithuania has therefore become an attractive country for migrant workers (from Ukraine in particular), while asylum applications have remained stable and low.

Since 1997, when the Lithuanian Parliament ratified the Geneva Convention (1951) and its Protocol (1967), migrants have been able to apply for asylum in Lithuania. In 2004, the Geneva Convention, its Protocol and the Law on the Status of Refugees (1997) were assembled in a single document, the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens (Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania, 2004). By ratifying the Geneva Convention, Lithuania legally committed itself to (i) protecting asylum-seekers and refugees and (ii) providing this group of people with ‘adequate’ conditions for integration. Such conditions include durable solutions, notably legal, economic and sociocultural ones. The legal element of refugee integration concerns rights and entitlements equal to those enjoyed by citizens of the host country: freedom of movement, access to education, the labour market, social support, health care, housing, property and family reunification. Beyond legal rights, the economic and sociocultural elements of life are also part of integration, ranging from self-reliance, sustainable livelihoods and the chance to contribute to economic life to social capital, networks and resources that are embedded in local communities and based on the principles of non-discrimination and non-exploitation (Da Costa, 2006).

These three solutions ideally help refugees and asylum-seekers to settle in the country permanently by facilitating their inclusion. In some Central and Eastern European countries and in the Baltic countries in particular, however, permanent settlement and inclusion of beneficiaries of international protection is a still challenging process. This is because a significant number of asylum-seekers, as well as ‘spontaneously arrived’ and ‘relocated’ refugees have already left Lithuania (as well as Latvia and Estonia) (Reuters, 2016; NewEurope, 2016). ¹ This process, called ‘secondary movement’, ² raises challenges for the European Commission Emergency Relocation Scheme (ECERS) (for more details, see the section on Statistics and secondary movement). According to unofficial sources, most beneficiaries of international protection tend to leave Lithuania for Germany.

Statistics and secondary movement

Since 1997, approximately 5800 asylum applications have been made in Lithuania. Out of this number, 700 people were granted refugee status, while 500 received subsidiary protection. ³ Prior to the 2015 ECERS launch, asylum-seekers coming to Lithuania tended to originate from the following countries: Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Georgia and Afghanistan. After the launch of ECERS and Lithuania’s commitment to relocate and resettle a total of 1105 asylum-seekers from Greece, Italy and Turkey, asylum-seekers tended to originate from Syria, Eritrea and Iraq. There has thus been a shift as regards the origin of asylum-seekers in Lithuania (Migration Department, 2017; EMN, 2018).

Traditionally, the number of asylum applications in Lithuania has been low compared with those in western Europe and the Nordic countries. ⁴ Lithuania has received a larger number of asylum applications than its Baltic neighbours Latvia and Estonia (Eurostat, 2018). ⁵

While Lithuania and, broadly speaking, the Baltic region, were less affected by the 2015 ‘migrant crisis’ than other countries – such as Germany, Hungary or Sweden – the number of asylum-seekers, refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection still peaked in the aftermath of this event. In 2015, 17 persons were granted refugee status, while 69 received subsidiary protection (see Figure 1). In 2016 the number of recognised refugees increased to 181, while those who received subsidiary protection decreased to 16. Finally, in 2017, 280 persons were granted refugee status and only 13 received subsidiary protection (Migration Department, 2017; EMN, 2018). Interestingly, and going against wider trends, asylum-seekers in 2016 and 2017 tended to receive refugee rather than subsidiary protection status. Lithuania therefore does not seem to be following wider trends in decreasing the number of refugees on whom official status is conferred.

OPEN IN VIEWER

Figure 1.

Asylum in Lithuania: 15-year overview.

Asylum-seekers tend to display similar behavioural patterns to Lithuanian nationals by choosing to leave the country. Out of 468 resettled and relocated asylum-seekers, 344 have left Lithuania, while 28 have already been returned. This means that Lithuania, in common with the other Baltic States Latvia and Estonia, needs to improve its socio-economic situation and strengthen the capacities of its integration programmes aimed at permanent settlement of beneficiaries of international protection.

People in Lithuania emigrate mainly because of declining economic opportunities and worsening socio-economic conditions (Genelyte, 2018; Woolfson and Sommers, 2016), including the consequences of global economic changes in 2008–2012, particularly – in the Lithuanian context – austerity measures, ⁶ unemployment, low earnings and indebtedness to banks. Among Lithuanian nationals, reasons for emigrating include rising inequalities, risk of poverty, social exclusion and low job satisfaction. In 2016, the incomes of the highest-earning 20 per cent of the Lithuanian population were 7.1 times higher than those of the bottom quintile, one of the highest such rates among the EU-28 (Eurostat, 2017). At the same time, the indicator describing poverty and social exclusion in the EU shows that Lithuania is among the EU countries experiencing the highest risk of poverty and social exclusion, affecting almost one-third of the population (Eurostat, 2016). In addition, wage inequality in Lithuania is high, while job quality is unsatisfactory (OECD, 2018). The situation just described has resulted in an unprecedented outward mobility flow from Lithuania. In 2010, emigration peaked at 83,000 people; in 2015 Lithuania had the biggest negative net migration per 1000 population in the EU. ⁷ Since 1990, the number of people living in Lithuania has fallen by 883,000, a massive 24 per cent of the population. Out of the aforementioned number, 707,000 emigrated (EMN, 2018). Looking at emigration and ethnicity it seems that emigration of some ethnic minorities (Russians, for example) is even more pronounced; the Polish minority, however, is less likely to emigrate due to its long history in Lithuania and well-established community (Klusener et al., 2015).

One possible reason why asylum-seekers and refugees may choose to leave Lithuania is racial prejudice among the general public and especially in the labour market (LSRC, 2015), although this is hardly unique in the EU (Eurobarometer, 2018). Lithuania is also struggling with a weak economy, however, which affects both nationals and non-nationals, including beneficiaries of international protection.

Reception and integration phases: access to the labour market and integration measures

There are two stages of reception and integration in Lithuania: before refugee status or subsidiary protection is granted (reception procedure) and after a particular status is granted (integration). ⁸ Concerning the reception procedure, asylum-seekers are not allowed to take up jobs or start businesses until they have been granted refugee status or subsidiary protection. Lithuania is therefore the only country in the EU that completely closes access to the labour market for asylum-seekers during the asylum procedure. ⁹ Once refugee status or subsidiary protection has been granted, beneficiaries of international protection are supposedly akin to locals with regard to social and economic rights, including employment. There is evidence to show that this is not the case, however. Before discussing this point, retracing refugees’ journey in the first 15 months in Lithuania is worthwhile.

Following the granting of refugee status or subsidiary protection, beneficiaries of international protection are housed in the Refugee Reception Centre (RRC), operated by the Ministry of Social Security and Labour, in a small rural village called Rukla for the first stage of the integration programme, where integration support is provided for up to three months. ¹⁰ After three months, integration continues in municipalities, where support is provided by NGOs and lasts for up to 12 months. The duration of the integration programme is 15 months in total with the possibility to prolong ¹¹ it for vulnerable groups (physical and mental health problems, large families with small children and low level of education and so on).

While in Rukla, RRC staff members coordinate their efforts for three months with social workers and the Lithuanian Labour Exchange ¹² to assist refugees in various ways. These include evaluating personal skills and qualifications, providing vocational training courses and assisting in job searches (in this latter task, the local Labour Market Training and Consulting Authority also joins the efforts). In addition, refugees are able to attend intensive Lithuanian language courses in order to be better prepared to access the labour market. Following the initial three months of support provided by RRC staff, during the remaining 12 months NGOs assist refugees. Support by NGOs is provided in so-called ‘one-stop shops’ for immigrants and beneficiaries of international protection. NGOs provide ongoing advice to help refugees in various areas of integration, including the labour market. Advisers provide (all) relevant information related to employment in Lithuania, offer information on the conditions for starting a business, and assist in looking for work and registering at Lithuanian labour offices (for more about the integration system, see Zibas, 2017, 2018; LSRC, 2017).

Labour market integration measures as a tool for reducing secondary movements from Lithuania

In order to reduce the likelihood of refugees leaving Lithuania, the government initiated a number of legislative developments related to refugees’ social and economic rights, including labour market integration measures. These include the Order on Approval of the Terms and Conditions for the Implementation of Employment Support Measures (Government of the Republic of Lithuania, 2017). This law sets out entitlements for the beneficiaries of international protection to additional support in finding employment:

support for professional training: during the training period, individuals with refugee status or subsidiary protection now receive a grant equivalent to 60 per cent of the minimum wage ¹³ or full social benefits for eligible unemployed individuals;

According to NGO representatives, ¹⁵ the measures discussed above have had a positive impact so far. On the one hand, these legislative developments have brought positive changes for refugees to access the labour market and for employers to start considering beneficiaries of international protection not just as an alternative to national workers, but also as a specific target group to satisfy labour market needs. On the other hand, economic incentives are unlikely to create more socially responsible businesses as currently there are only economic incentives for employers with no proactive activities from the private sector. At the moment, it is still not clear how many employed refugees will remain at the same workplace after incentives expire. Therefore it is too early to evaluate whether these measures have had a positive outcome in reducing secondary movement. Such developments do show, however, that the so-called ‘refugee crisis’ could be considered not only as a challenge for integration policies and capacities to relocate and resettle refugees, but also as an opportunity to strengthen integration infrastructure. This fact can be illustrated by attempts to reduce secondary movements in Lithuania by initiating active labour market integration measures.

Conclusion: societal attitudes as an obstacle to labour market integration

The labour market integration measures discussed above have the potential to change integration outcomes in a positive direction. At the same time, the receiving society plays an important role. Societal attitudes towards immigration in general and refugees in particular are a strong indicator of an inclusive environment (or otherwise) both in local communities and at the workplace. According to the latest public opinion poll (LSRC, 2017), Lithuanian residents remain culturally closed and tend to see the threats rather than the opportunities that refugees might bring. Focusing on the situation in the labour market, one important indicator measures inclusive and/or exclusive working environment; 30 per cent of respondents indicated their unwillingness to work at the same workplace with refugees. Such data show that despite government policies and employers’ commitments, there is a need to implement diversity and inclusion policies at the workplace to create a more welcoming environment, not only for beneficiaries of international protection, but also for other vulnerable groups.