Language Policy in Practice: Re‐bordering the Nation

Abstract

We present findings from an anthropological field study on the role of language and language policy in migration from Poland to Norway, and the larger implications for emerging language and immigration policy in Europe. Initial fieldwork in Norway found that Polish workers without knowledge of the Norwegian language struggled to secure employment in the formal economy. The 2008 financial crisis intensified competition in the labour market and underscored fluency in Norwegian as a means of discriminating among workers. Comparative case studies of language schools revealed that these organizations are active participants in channeling Polish migrants' movements into a segmented labour market, often in ways that involve cooperation between private companies and the State. We frame the Norwegian case within the larger context of Europe and the trend there toward favoring integration over multiculturalism. The emergence of restrictive language policies in Europe may be interpreted as a legally and culturally acceptable means for discouraging access to rights associated with permanent residency or citizenship by work migrants from CEE countries, while at the same time permitting them access to the labour market for temporary work. The long-term consequences of such policies for European society are uncertain.

Healthcare professionals on the move: Investing in learning a new language for work

“…Access to the labour market can be regulated and limited through setting language requirements for authorisation, and labour shortages can be tackled by providing tailor-made language education. Th e selection of so-called good migrants, who deserve high-quality, free or state-supported language education, over so-called bad migrants, who are denied these rights, is oft en the result of language policies (Baba & Dahl-Jørgensen 2013). Doctors, for example, usually belong to the fi rst group, as their expertise is urgently needed.…”

Migration und Berufsbildung in der Schweiz

“…Die gesellschaftliche Investition in die Weiter-und Ausbildung von (arbeitslosen) Zugewanderten (oder auch arbeitslosen Schweizerinnen und Schweizer) widerspiegelt in diesem Sinne die Einschätzung vom potentiellen wirtschaftlichen Wert dieser Personen (Flubacher, Duchêne & Coray, 2018;Lessenich, 2008 Allan, 2016;Del Percio, Flubacher & Duchêne, 2016;Roberts, 2013;Yeung & Flubacher, 2016). So könnte bezüglich der Festlegung des GER-Niveaus für die Zulassung zu bestimmten Berufsfeldern auch argumentiert werden, dass es sich hierbei um eigentliche protektionistische Massnahmen handelt: es werden (sprachliche) Barrieren zum Schutz der lokalen Bevölkerung errichtet (siehe auch Baba & Dahl-Jørgensen, 2013), wie gerade beim aufwändigen und langwierigen Anerkennungsprozess ausländischer Diplome ersichtlich wird Bichl, 2016;Thum et al, 2015). Diese Mechanismen der Selektion und Kategorisierung treten vor allem angesichts der Asylpolitik in Erscheinung respektive in den selektiven politischen Bestrebungen, Geflüchtete umgehend in den Arbeitsmarkt zu integrieren.…”

English as a Border-Drawing Matter: Language and the Regulation of Migrant Service Worker Mobility in International Labor Markets

“…However, language policy interacts with temporary migration flows because of its importance in certain sectors, including hospitality. The economic value ascribed to language skills is sector-specific (Grin 2001), and migrants are often channelled into particular segments of the labor market based on assessments of their language ability (Baba and Dahl-Jørgensen 2013). Research in Canada shows that immigrants deemed to be lacking English are overrepresented in the lower-skilled, poorly paid manufacturing and service sectors (Liu 1996).…”