Human security under construction: Exploring social consequences for labour migrants in an enlarged European Union

The geographical enlargement of the European Union (EU) in 2004 and 2007 made it possible for millions of workers to move across the EU in search for work. Considering the regional variation of social and economic stability, the free movement of labour had a big impact on the European labour market, especially the deepening of segmentation and thereby undermining of national labour standards, often leaving migrant workers without protection. This study investigates the dynamics behind intra-EU labour migration by citizens of EU member-states resulting from the inclusion of new member states in 2004 and 2007. The case of Polish migrant labourers into the Netherlands’ construction sector is examined to show how the generations of policy measures that aim to protect the working conditions of labour migrants may not have reached their objectives, but instead generated novel forms of precariousness and insecurity in workers’ everyday lives. To bring to the fore the specific meanings of insecurity, the paper draws insights from the human security framework, itself being derived from human rights theory endorsed by the EU as a community. By bringing migrant workers’ subjective notions of, and responses to, (in)security and precariousness in relation to policy changes, the paper queries the assumptions behind the policy measures. It argues that current policy debates on intra-EU labour migration may be misdirected due to the tendency of treating labour migration in an abstract form of labour as a commodity, according to which the costs and benefits of particular policies are evaluated, and comparisons with other groups in society are made. The paper argues that a perspective of human security helps to bring to light human features such as feelings, dreams and other attributes related to non-materialistic well-being, and that it can help policy makers to appreciate the deeper meanings of insecurity and precariousness so as to recognise migrants’ subjective responses to their changing situation. If inclusion is indeed the main goal, policies cannot afford to focus only on the dynamics of labour markets, but must be accompanied with an understanding of identity-making and subjectivities of labour migrants. Methodologically, a review of existing literature reveals a socially and economic stratified labour market, pointing towards certain structural dynamics of particular significance within the construction sector. The seasonal character of construction work, together with flexible employment arrangements and deskilling processes as a result of this, is in combination with life stories from migrant workers as well as discussions with trade unionists, presenting the free movement of labour within the EU as a complicated political issue with substantial social and economic challenges.