Migration Dialogues: Access to Services and Social Protection

PSI's intervention in the third Round Table consultation in the run up to the International Migration Review Forum this May calls for migrants’ full and non-discriminatory access to inclusive and quality public services.

The UN Migration Network is organizing a dialogue series from January through April this year to help shape the agenda and contents of the four roundtables of the International Migration Review Forum (IMRF 2022) of the UN Global Compact on Migration.

PSI Migration Programme Officer, Genevieve Gencianos, delivered PSI’s intervention at this Third Round Table Consultation, 2 February. It brings PSI key messages on access to inclusive and quality public services (Objective 15) and access to and portability of social security for migrant workers (Objective 22) of the Global Compact.

Read her full intervention below

Access to Services (Objective 15)

Crucial to migrants’ access to services is their full and non-discriminatory access to inclusive and quality public services which deliver on the human right to health, education, social care, public infrastructure, safe water and sanitation, among others. Public service workers are the ones who deliver these services from the national to sub-national levels, such as cities and municipalities. PSI unions represent these workers, which include among them migrant workers.

We have seen in pandemic and climate disasters the critical importance of well-funded and functioning public services, and how public service workers have been risking their lives to keep society functioning in the midst of the crises and in the recovery efforts.  

The covid-19 pandemic has shown why universal health coverage (UHC) is our ultimate goal, where the SDGs and Global Compact on Migration are in full alignment in ensuring that everyone has access to life-saving treatment and to the vaccines. On the issue of vaccines, PSI has been leading the global campaign for the TRIPS waiver to make vaccine production accessible to developing countries.

Crucial to UHC, is human resources for health for all countries. The pandemic has shown the vital need for adequate numbers of health workers to deliver healthcare. It also highlighted the important role and contribution that migrant health workers have made to the COVID-19 response. Unfortunately, however, among the highest number of infections and deaths were suffered by migrant health and care workers, a majority of whom are women. PSI unions are at the frontlines in representing health and care workers and rectifying these injustices (see PSI fact sheets Migrant health care workers during the covid-19 pandemic).

PSI fully supports the human rights of all migrants to access quality public services. Within our unions, we support the establishment of firewalls, separating access to health and other public services from immigration control and we advocate that public service workers providing services and assistance to undocumented migrants should not be penalised or criminalized for doing so. In Europe, our European organization, the EPSU, has established the EU Care Network, where unions organizing workers involved in the reception and care services are able to exchange experiences, engage in social dialogue and advocacy on migrant and refugee rights, including in the reform of the EU Asylum and Migration policy.

 Social Protection (Objective 22)

PSI believes that access to and portability of social security for migrant workers must be guaranteed and governed by multilateral or bilateral agreements, and in line with international human rights norms and labour standards. We commend the efforts of a number of countries that have done so, as well as the resolution adopted by the International Labour Conference that include recommendations on portability of social protection for migrant workers. These are all steps in the right direction, and member states and all stakeholders can certainly do more.

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