Making a living at the interface of legality and illegality: Chinese migrant workers in Israel¹

Abstract

Since the late 1990s, Israel has become a new destination for Chinese migrant workers. In the view of many studies conducted in Israel, the Chinese migrant workers are often a neglected and almost invisible group. The purpose of this paper is to explore the initiation of this migration trend and its social consequences. The major discussion of this study focuses on how the whole process of migration is carried out at the interface between legality and illegality. Research in the sending area suggests that the urgent need for manual labour in Israel provides possibilities to attract both documented and undocumented migrant workers and therefore turns labour transportation into a profitable business. Although no one agrees that undocumented working activities should continue, all of the factors interact and result in a permissive situation allowing this particular combination of the illegal but licit to persist in transnational labour migration. More than anything else, this micro-level study attempts to find the true story from the individual voices of local people.

A pollution incident at aQiaoxiangvillage in China: the role of migration in civic organization and political participation

“…In Japan, G. Liu-Farrer (2008) argued that the social capital that initially facilitates migration, and which subsequently secures the livelihood of Fujian migrants, could ultimately become a liability prohibiting them from achieving upward mobility. Finally, Minghuan (2012) explored both the commencement and consequences of Fujian immigration in Israel. Like Kwong, she suggested that both documented and undocumented migrant workers from Fujian serve the urgent need for manual labour, and in the process turn the transnational transportation of labour into a profitable business.…”

Implications of Collection of Excessive Brokerage Fees for Migrant Workers in the Domestic Care Sector in Israel

“…According to the US Department of State Trafficking in Persons report (Nathan, ), the fees in Israel range from $1,000 to $10,000 for all workers except Chinese workers who pay up to $20,000. Minghuan () found that Chinese construction workers pay sums that can reach up to $18,750.…”

The impact of government regulation on recruitment process, rights, wages and working conditions of labor migrants in the Israeli construction sector

“…The shift to a largely market-driven system of labor migrant recruitment fomented the proliferation of a large industry of private agents and intermediaries (Ellman, 2003;Agunias, 2009;Minghuan, 2012;Fernandez, 2013). The shift to a largely market-driven system of labor migrant recruitment fomented the proliferation of a large industry of private agents and intermediaries (Ellman, 2003;Agunias, 2009;Minghuan, 2012;Fernandez, 2013).…”

“…2003; Kushnirovich, 2010), rights abuses (Willen, 2003), and non-appropriate living conditions (Minghuan, 2012), which became widespread in Israel in the 2000s (Gottlieb, 2002;Ellman, 2003).…”

“…The global economic crisis led many countries to put an end to massive recruitment of labor migrants and to impose restrictions on migration flows and entry rules. The shift to a largely market-driven system of labor migrant recruitment fomented the proliferation of a large industry of private agents and intermediaries (Ellman, 2003;Agunias, 2009;Minghuan, 2012;Fernandez, 2013). Only in recent years have these private intermediaries (recruiting agencies, sub-agents or brokers) become the focus of substantial research into a new field, labeled 'migration industry'.…”