Rethinking Migration in the Context of Precarity: The Case of Turkey

Abstract

Migrants with undocumented/irregular statuses constitute one of the most vulnerable groups in terms of living and working conditions. This paper critically engages with the discussions on precarity in relation to irregular migrant labour in Turkey. It addresses the living and working conditions of migrant workers as a particular form of work and life, who can be seen as representing the new precariat of Turkey. The number of immigrants has grown in Turkey since the late 1980s, and with the mass influx of Syrian migrants since 2011 the public visibility of migration and associated precarity has increased as well. Deriving from such a context, the article adopts a theoretical and empirical analysis of the relationship between precarity and migration in the Turkish context by critically evaluating migrant workers' work and life experiences (including migrants' contestations of their everyday life).

Turkey’s governance of irregular migration at European Union borders: Emerging geographies of care and control

“…Furthermore, due to their status under the temporary protection regime, Syrians are set free following their interception. Given the limited socio-economic opportunities and restricted rights to citizenship for Syrians in Turkey (Baban et al, 2017;S¸enses, 2016), a significant question remains as to how border policing shapes human mobility dynamics from and through Turkey at large, which future research might explore. This includes an examination of the effects of border practices on the adoption, adjustment and dismissal by migrants of decisions, strategies, instruments, relationships and networks through which human mobility operates at the local level.…”

Precarious resettlement at the Bui Dam, Ghana—Unmaking the teleological

“…Precarity is most widely used to describe the condition of employment insecurity arising from the dual processes of neoliberalism and globalisation. However, recognising the similarities between labour market precarity and other conditions of insecurity (Banki, 2013a), the concept has been extended to describe other phenomena such as the continued feminisation of domestic labour (Gutiérrez‐Rodríguez, 2014), terrorism (Ettlinger, 2007), refugees (Banki, 2013b), and other forms of forced and spontaneous migration (Joronen & Griffiths, 2019; Paret & Gleeson, 2016; Şenses, 2015). This latter strand of the literature is relevant to elucidating the politics of resettlement.…”

Grateful Precarious Worker? Ukrainian Migrants in Poland

“…Although existing research has placed particular focus on precarious working conditions and working time in relation to migrants (Potter and Hamilton 2014; Pye et al 2012; Şenses 2016; Smit and Rugunanan 2014; Velayutham 2013; Villegas 2014), there is also research that examines the precarity employment in more detail, analyzing all dimensions of precarious work (Berntsen and Lillie 2016; Boese et al 2013; Brabant and Raynault 2012a; Goldring and Landolt 2011; McDowell, Batnitzky, and Dyer 2009; Potter and Hamilton 2014; Smit and Rugunanan 2014; Velayutham 2013). What remains certain is that migrants make up a large share of the world’s precariat (Jørgensen 2016; Schierup et al 2015) and that poor working conditions and other negative aspects of precarious employment from which they suffer are spreading to the entire working population (Casas-Cortés 2014).…”