Migrant workers in the Highlands and Islands study 2005

A new study highlighting the recent significant increase in the number of migrant workers in the Highlands and Islands has called for a co-ordinated approach to helping them integrate into life in the area.

Commissioned by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), the aim of the research was to provide fresh information and understanding of the growing role overseas nationals are playing in the Highlands and Islands’ labour market. The study also sought to establish the distinctive needs of migrant workers and their employers and to identify ways of meeting these.

With official figures showing the number overseas nationals registered as working in the HIE area has doubled to more than 2,500 in two years, the report calls for co-ordination of efforts by the public and private sectors and civil society to address the challenges raised for the area’s infrastructure, such as housing and education, by the growth and diversification of the population.

It highlights the need to clarify and agree the responsibilities of employers, public sector bodies at local, regional and national levels, communities and the voluntary sector. It also highlights the importance of recognising integration is an interactive process, involving migrants as well as the host community.

The full report can be downloaded here (right) in Acrobat pdf format.

HIE Inverness and East Highland has published guidance for migrant workers arriving from the Baltic States. It is available here, too, in both English and Polish languages.