Transnational practices of Albanian families during the Greek crisis: unemployment, de-regularization and return

Abstract

The outbreak of economic crisis in Greece in 2010 and the austerity measures adopted have dramatically altered the economic and social conditions throughout the country and consequently deeply impacted the migrant families. With Albanian regular migrants losing the legal status and lapsing back into irregularity due to the high unemployment rates, the reverse process of de-regularization and social disintegration has emerged. As a result, many migrants drew on family and social networks to pursue work opportunities either back home or elsewhere, while maintaining their formal ties/ residence in Greece. This article explores the impact of the Greek crisis and deregularization phenomenon on the transnational practices among Albanian families. Our aim is to go beyond the general theories on transnationalism and look at what exactly is the impact of the crisis on the families, as well as individuals' dilemmas of return and negotiations between transnational mobility and staying put, between different levels of belonging and their orientation to the present and future. The empirical analysis is based on in-depth interviews with 70 Albanians of first and second generation living in Greece.

A Regretful Journey Home: Albanian Return Migration in the Wake of the Global Financial Crisis of 2008

“…To illustrate, between 2008 and 2011, the unemployment rate of Albanians in Greece increased from 6 to 21% (Cavounidis 2018) and by 2011, 40% of the Albanian migrants in Greece lost their jobs (Hausman and Nedelkoska, 2018) which was reflected in the flow of remittances to Albania which decreased markedly from 2008 to 2014 (USD 1450 million to USD 1150 million-a drop from 11 to 8.5% of Albanian GDP, respectively; see Hausman and Nedelkoska, 2018). In turn, the high unemployment rates led to regular migrants losing their jobs and an inability to contribute to the welfare system which made it difficult to obtain residency rights in Greece (Gemi, 2014). As a result of unemployment, large number of people lost their legal residence status which led to Albanians returning to Albania in order to seek employment opportunities there (Adamczyk 2016).…”

Empowerment or a double burden? Work, family, and agency among Albanian migrant women in Greece

“…The economic crises: The global financial crisis, which had very strong negative effects on the Greek economy, and on the wider economic, social, and cultural conditions in the country (Gemi 2014), challenged and destabilised Greek employment regimes (Xhaho and C¸aro 2016). The economic crisis significantly affected labour sectors that were overwhelmingly comprised of immigrant men (Xhaho and C¸aro 2016).…”

Unpacking Young Migrants’ Collective Identities: The Case of Ethnonational Identifications and Belonging

“…Living under the under the state of semi‐legality, fear and precariousness has been reported by earlier studies on Albanian migrants’ incorporation in Thessaloniki (see Hatziprokopiou, ). In the context of crisis‐stricken Greece, Albanian migrants have been experiencing renewed de‐regularisation, political exclusion and economic marginalisation (Gemi, ).The negative impact of economic crisis on the integration of migrants can also be related to the ‘explosive sociopolitical environment, which directly or indirectly has threatened migrants’ well‐being’(Mavrommatis, , p. 4).This is evident in Alexandros's narrative in which we can see the omnipotent categorising power of the state to name and impose the category of foreignness via its monopolisation of physical and symbolic violence (Brubaker and Cooper, ). In this context, the sense of belonging to Greek society is undermined by state‐induced categorisation and the pervading sense of bounded agency and constrained freedom that seems to afflict the lives of young migrants like Alexandros.…”

“…Over the half of the migrant population (65%) originates from Albania, thus making up the largest migrant group. In the context of crisis and austerity that have been afflicting Greek society since 2009, the rising levels of unemployment and under‐employment have engendered the de‐regularisation and de‐integration of parts of the migrant population (Gemi, ; Mavrommatis, ). This has resulted in a considerable number of Albanian migrants losing their employment and, being unable to renew their residence permits, in turn losing their legal stay status, while others return to Albania or migrate to other European countries (Gemi, ; Michail, ; Michail and Christou, ).…”