Eschewing Russia, Uzbek migrants seek new labour markets in Europe

TASHKENT -- Uzbek migrant workers are seeking employment in European countries in increasing numbers, eschewing once-favoured Russia, where they now face instability and potential forced recruitment to fight in Ukraine.

Uzbekistan was a leading source of seasonal migrant workers in the United Kingdom last year, with almost a quarter of 2022 seasonal work arrivals coming from Central Asia, Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) reported May 31.

Last year, British authorities issued more than 6,000 work visas to citizens of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

"We saw a sharp upturn in the number of seasonal workers coming to the UK from Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan in 2022," Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) director Darryl Dixon said in the SIA report.

"Our intelligence indicates that this is only going to keep rising in the next few years."

The GLAA strives to ensure every foreign worker participating in the programme "leaves with a positive experience of working on UK farms and [is] not exploited", he added.

The United Kingdom and European Union (EU) countries are some of the most promising destinations for migrant workers from Uzbekistan, the Institute for Forecasting and Macroeconomic Research of Uzbekistan noted in April 2022.

Since Russia began its assault on Ukraine in February 2022, triggering a shortage of seasonal workers from the two countries, British farmers have recruited from Central Asia to fill the gap, the London Telegraph reported in May 2022.

In 2021, Ukrainians and Russians received 22,761 of the work visas issued by the UK Home Office, but those numbers dropped because of the war, it said.

European migration agreements

Last year, German companies employed about 300 Uzbek citizens, Dunyo.info reported in May, citing German publication MiGAZIN.

Germany and Uzbekistan have been working on a migration agreement that will significantly ease procedures, according to the report.

The agreement also is expected to foster the development of education partnerships that will help to expand economic and cultural ties, with Uzbek students authorised to work in Germany as part of the deal.

Meanwhile, Uzbekistan and Austria in March announced they plan to open a training centre for migrant workers in Uzbekistan, with a curriculum that will incorporate local standards for work in Germany and Austria.

The process of sending Uzbek citizens to work in the EU is advancing slowly but surely, according to lawyer and migration scholar Botir Shermukhammedov, who edits Migrant.uz.

"Much depends on the citizens themselves, since the desire to work abroad is not enough: knowledge of foreign languages is also required," he told Caravanserai. "Unfortunately, our citizens have many problems with this [need for fluency]."

Russia loses appeal for workers

The deteriorating situation in Russia is one reason Uzbek migrants are turning towards Europe. Having long faced xenophobia in Russia, migrants now also face the very real possibility of being recruited to fight in Ukraine.

Russia invaded its neighbour in February 2022.

Previous recruiting pitches in Tajik and Uzbek have specifically targeted Central Asian migrants, promising a simplified procedure for getting Russian citizenship.

Tashkent province welder Sunnat Tuychiyev, 40, told Caravanserai he has travelled to Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Türkiye as a migrant labourer.

Tuychiyev returned two years ago from Türkiye, where he said he earned about $1,000 a month working for a perfume company.

"I liked Türkiye the most. It has respect for the individual, and employment involves less bureaucracy," he said. "I will never go to Russia again. There are xenophobia and hatred towards foreign workers there."

Tuychiyev said he is putting together documents to travel to Croatia, where his brother is already employed, before the end of the year.

"My brother says in [Croatia] the working conditions are very good and the wages are better than in Russia, and there is no hatred of newcomers," he said.

Labyrinthine migration policies

Russia's labyrinthine migration policies often mean migrants unintentionally break the law, European University at St. Petersburg anthropologist Sergei Abashin told Caravanserai.

In addition to the required exams, he said, foreign citizens must obtain many documents, including a work permit, and must renew their papers every month.

"In going through these procedures, every foreign citizen unintentionally violates something," Abashin said. "Russian migration policy is arranged in such a way that it is almost impossible to comply with it without violating the law."

"Either you aren't registered, or you have the wrong permit, or you're working under the wrong permit," he said. "Two or three violations of this kind, and you'll be deported or they'll bar your entry."

Adopting measures that redirect migrant workers to countries other than Russia is a positive trend, said Rustam Urinboyev, a professor of sociology of law at Lund University in Sweden.

Uzbekistan will continue to rely on migrant worker remittances for many years to come, he said, noting that the population is growing but its economy is limited.

"It is necessary to reform political institutions, build a strong civil society and increase the political and legal awareness of citizens," Urinboyev told Caravanserai.

"Only then will economic reforms be effective," he added. "Only then can the migration be reduced."