Spain: EWCO CAR on working conditions of nationals with a foreign background
Disclaimer: This information is made available as a service to the public but has not been edited or approved by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. The content is the responsibility of the authors.
There is very limited information on nationals with a foreign background, as this issue is not important in the Spanish context (in comparison to migrant workers, which definitely is). Concerning traditional groups with specific ethnic affiliation, the most important one is the Roma group, among whom self-employment and working in family businesses is largely widespread, and working conditions are more precarious. Finally, the Spanish Government has implemented many public policies to promote social inclusion of immigrants and discriminated ethnic groups, whereas Social Partners actively support the fight for equal rights among all workers.
As nationals with a foreign background are considered:
(1) Nationals having acquired the nationality, born or not in the country of the acquired nationality, and their descendants. Depending on the history of nationality, following groups in bold are relevant: (example for Belgium):
Native Belgians:
-
Nationals: Native-born with native-born parent(s) (and grand parents) and having the Belgian nationality
Immigrants
-
Nationals: Foreign-born and Belgian by naturalisation
-
Non-nationals: Foreign-born and non-national
Second generation
-
Nationals: Native-born with foreign born parent(s) and Belgian by birth or by naturalisation
-
Non-nationals: Native-born with foreign-born parent(s) and non-national
Third generation
-
Nationals: Native-born with native-born parents and foreign born grandparent(s) and Belgian by birth or by naturalisation
-
Non-nationals: Native-born with native-born parents and with foreign-born grandparent(s) and non-national
(2) Not only nationals with a foreign background but also nationals with a specific ethnic affiliation (different from the typical of the country) need to be taken into consideration because their outcome on the labour market can also be less positive.
The questionnaire focuses on the following topics:
-
The availability of statistical sources and studies on the labour market situation and working conditions of nationals with a foreign background.
-
The current debate in the country on the use of ‘ethnic categorisation’ and measuring immigrant origin or immigration-related ethnicity in statistical sources related to work and employment. See for background information on this issue Simon, 2007.
-
Mapping of the population of nationals with a foreign background in the country, their employment situation and working conditions.
-
Overview of the key policies related to the employment situation and working conditions of this group and the role anti-discrimination legislation and complaint procedures, social partners and labour inspectorate play in this regard.
The contributions will be light-edited as “national contributions’ and published independently on the web.
1. Sources of information
1.1 Statistical sources
The main sources of information concerning nationals with a foreign background are the following:
-
Municipal Register of Spain (Spanish National Institute of Statistics, INE), which provides information about the nationality and place of birth of the Spanish population.
-
EPA Survey (“Encuesta de Población Activa” or “Active Population Survey” of the Spanish National Institute of Statistics, INE), and more precisely, an ad-hoc module on the situation of immigrants and their children concerning the labour market (2008).
On the other hand, concerning groups of nationals with a specific ethnic affiliation, it is important to mention the ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation, a non-profit intercultural social organisation specialized in the Roma community of Spain. More precisely, it has conducted a research project on the situation of the Spanish Roma community in 2005, focusing on the labour market. For this study, the criteria and terms of the EPA Survey were applied, in order to make the information comparable, even if the Roma population is so structurally unique.
1.2 Debate on measuring immigration-related ethnicity and labour statistics
In Spain there is very limited information on the issue of nationals with a foreign background, for a number of reasons:
-
Spain has traditionally been a country of emigration. Thus, and during the fifties and sixties (and to a lower extent in the seventies), Spaniards went out to other countries (usually other European countries) to find better job opportunities than the ones existing in Spain.
-
It is only since the mid- nineties that Spain has witnessed a massive in-flow of migrant workers, mainly linked to the rapid economic growth period that has characterised the Spanish economy until 2008. Just to give some data, and whereas in 1991 there were about 350,000 foreigners living in Spain, in 2007 this figure had increased to 4.5 million foreigners, where this figure currently represents about 10% of the total Spanish population, although with important differences between the regions (ES0907019I) (this figure is now 5.7 million in 2010, or 12.2% of the total population). Of course, the largest majority of migrant population comes for job searching reasons, so a large percentage of migrant people is young (51.9% of migrant people are between 20 and 39 years old in comparison to a 32.7% amongst the whole population (data for 2006).
-
Therefore, migration is a relatively “new phenomenon” in the Spanish labor market, although some studies have been carried out on the situation of these migrant workers in general (see for instance ES0701039Q and ES0809079I). In fact, over the last years, working conditions among immigrant workers have become an issue of growing interest. Several studies on life and working conditions among immigrants have been conducted, both before and after the crisis crash, analyzing the peculiarities for this collective. However, there is no information concerning the specific collective of nationals with foreign background, as this group is yet not very relevant in quantitative terms. Probably, this issue will become important when the next generation of migrants’ children will have accessed the labor market.
-
On the other hand, in Spain there is not any traditional group with a specific ethnic affiliation, with the only exception of the “gipsy” or Roma group. This is certainly the main ethnic minority group in Spain, well established in the country and for whom there is a relatively important amount of available information on employment and working conditions. In this sense, the subsequent sections will focus on this specific group.
2. Population
2.1 Main groups of nationals with a foreign background/specific ethnic affiliation
In view of the comments made in the previous section, there is very limited information on nationals with a foreign background. However, it is interesting to look at the data collected in the Municipal Register of Spain (Spanish National Institute of Statistics, INE). According to this source of information, and for the year 2009, there were 46,745,807 individuals registered in Spain, out of which 41,097,136 had Spanish nationality. Additionally, most of these Spanish nationals were born in Spain (39,965,339) (See Table 1).
| All nationalities | Spanish | Non-Spanish | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 46,745,807 | 41,097,136 | 5,648,671 |
| Born in Spain | 40,279,529 | 39,965,339 | 314,190 |
| Born out of Spain | 6,466,278 | 1,131,797 | 5,334,481 |
On the other hand, and focusing on the population with Spanish nationality born out of the Spanish borders (1,131,797), it should be highlighted that almost half of them were born in the areas of South America and Central America and the Caribbean, accounting for a total of 546,506 people, or 48.29%.
Unfortunately enough, there is no easy-to-access information on this group by sex or age groups. Meanwhile, it is not possible to obtain information about ethnic origins, since it is forbidden to make questions on this issue.
| Europe (Spain not included) | 358,262 |
|---|---|
| America | 582,892 |
| Central America and the Caribbean | 100,327 |
| North America | 36,386 |
| South America | 446,179 |
| Africa | 140,281 |
| Asia | 46,535 |
| Oceania | 3,827 |
| Total | 1,131,797 |
Source: Spanish Municipal Register. National Institute of Statistics. 2009.
Finally, and regarding groups of nationals with a specific ethnic affiliation, the ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation has collected some information concerning the Roma population of Spain. It is estimated that this group accounts for approximately 700,000 individuals (data for 2009), where gender distribution is 50.5% for men and 49.5% for women. According to this source, Spain seems to be among the 4 first countries in the European Union with the highest number of Roma people.
2.2 Demographic data (including recent trends in the 2000-2010 period)
The only available information refers to the number of people who have Spanish nationality but who have been born out of Spain. Thus, according to the Spanish Municipal Register, this number has grown gradually in the past years. More precisely, in 2005, and out of a total of 40,377,920 persons with Spanish nationality, there were 827,287 persons born out of Spain (2.05% of the people with Spanish nationality). These figures have progressively increased, until reaching in 2009 a total of 1,131,797, that is, 2.75% of the Spanish nationals (See Table 3).
| Total (Spanish nationality) | Born in Spain | Born out of Spain | % Born out of Spain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 40,377,920 | 39,550,633 | 827,287 | 2.05 |
| 2006 | 40,564,798 | 39,683,051 | 881,747 | 2.17 |
| 2007 | 40,681,183 | 39,738,965 | 942,218 | 2.32 |
| 2008 | 40,889,060 | 39,851,397 | 1,037,663 | 2.54 |
| 2009 | 41,097,136 | 39,965,339 | 1,131,797 | 2.75 |
Source: Spanish Municipal Register. National Institute of Statistics. 2005-2009.
2.3 Active population (including recent trends in the 2000-2010 period)
The EPA Survey (“Encuesta de Población Activa” or “Active Population Survey” conducted by the Spanish Institute of Statistics, INE) presents an ad-hoc module which includes some information concerning the situation of immigrants and their children with regard to the labour market. Thus, according to the data available for the year 2008, there were a total of 30,080,200 people with Spanish nationality within the age range 16-74. (See Table 4)
The majority of them, that is, 29,527,600 persons (or 98.16%) acquired their Spanish nationality when they were born. If the group of persons who acquired the Spanish nationality subsequently to their birth is further analysed (534,600 individuals in total), it can be said that most of them (468,300) were able to acquire it younger than 45.
| Total | 30,080.2 |
|---|---|
| At birth | 29,527.6 |
| Subsequently | 534.6 |
| Younger than 25 years | 218.0 |
| Between 25 and 45 years | 250.3 |
| Over 45 years | 66.2 |
| N.A. | 18.1 |
Source: EPA Survey. Spanish National Institute of Statistics. In thousands of persons.
On the other hand, the ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation has collected some significant information on employment among Roma population. According to this source, in 2005 there were a total of 443,365 individuals aged 16 and over belonging to the Spanish Roma population, which means 69.9% of the total. Among them, 330,000 were either employed or are actively seeking for employment.
The activity rate for the Spanish population at large is 56.1%, whereas for the Roma population, it is 69.3%. Presumably, the activity rate among Roma population is higher due to the fact that the Roma population is younger than the Spanish population at large (with an average age of 27.5 compared with 39.5).
3. Employment situation
3.1 Labour market participation
As in previous sections, it has not been possible to find any information on nationals with foreign background. However, there is some interesting information concerning labour market and employment among Roma population in Spain, collected by the ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation in 2005. Thus, all the information contained in section 3 and 4 comes from this source.
According to the information available, in 2005 there were a total of 330,000 Roma individuals who were employed or actively seeking for employment. Moreover, within the active Roma population, an estimated 283,417 (86.1%) were employed, while 45,600 (13.8%) were unemployed. In contrast, a slightly higher 89.6% of the overall Spanish active population was employed.
3.2 Sectoral or occupational statistics
Concerning the information available on sectors breakdown, and according to the data expressed in this table, the active Roma population is apparently more involved in the tertiary and specifically the services sector than the overall Spanish population. As well as this, the higher percentage employed in agriculture and the very low percentage employed in industry is very significant.
| Sectors | Overall Spanish Population | Roma population |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and fishery | ||
| Industry | ||
| Construction | ||
| Services | ||
| Total |
Source: “Roma Population and employment”. Secretariado Gitano Foundation. 2005.
Interestingly also, concerning the “most cited activities” among the active Roma population, nearly 4 out of every 10 workers define their activity within the “peddling” sector, which is not very regulated or standardised and which certainly harbours a sector of underemployment. Then, nearly 3 out of every 10 workers is employed in construction (mostly labourers), the agricultural sector (pickers) and in cleaning and domestic services.
3.3 Employment status
Concerning the employment status, 73.2% of the active Spanish population is employed as salaried workers, compared to only 44.4% of the active Roma population. On the contrary, 41.9% of the active Roma population is either self-employed or work in family businesses, whereas in the case of the Spanish population at large, the percentage goes down to 16.4%.
With regard to the type of contract, data indicate that the temporality rate is higher among salaried Roma workers. Thus, in Spain as a whole, fixed-term contracts account for 30.9% of all employment, whereas this figure rises to 71% when it comes to Roma workers. Moreover, an important proportion of Roma jobholders (15%) have a “peculiar” contractual situation, with no contract governing the labour relationship.
3.4 Possible determinants
First of all, it must be taken into account that the results of the study conducted by ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation might not be strictly comparable to the EPA Survey (“Active Population Survey”), since terms might have different contents/meanings for the Roma population. Therefore, if the computation was made in another way, it is likely that the inactivity or unemployment rates among Roma population would be higher.
Interestingly also, it is possible to highlight that the large percentage of the active Roma population who is either self-employed or work in family businesses, where a great proportion of them undertake non-remunerated activities.
Additionally, Roma active individuals face a more precarious labour reality. Young Roma workers start working earlier and study for shorter, so they usually access to less qualified employment. As well as this, they suffer from higher temporality rates, and a significant number have no contract governing the labour relationship.
4. Working conditions
4.1 Training, skills and employability
The information contained in this section will be based again on the ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation (data for the year 2005).
Concerning levels of education, in the case of the active Roma population, 66.5% of them are illiterate or have not finished their primary studies, while in the case of the active population for the whole of Spain this figure stands at 3.19%. Therefore, Roma workers tend to undertake activities requiring little qualification, with practically two thirds of them engaging low qualification jobs.
With regard to labour training, only 15% of the “jobholders” or employed persons have taken part in studies or some form of training over the last six months. There is a larger tendency among young people and those with the highest academic qualifications to show the greatest interest in further training activities.
4.2 Working hours
With regard to the working day, 42% of Roma employees work part-time, compared with 8.5% of the overall Spanish population. Concerning the number of hours worked, 38.9% work less than 30 hours per week (less than 6 hours per day) and only a fifth (19.4%) work more than 40 hours. More precisely, a quarter of Roma workers (24.3%) work fewer than 4 hours per day on average, which is closely related to the type of job (i.e. family business), the type of contract, etc.
4.3. Health & safety
The majority of the active Roma population (77.5%) is in good health. Out of the remaining 22.5%, 20.3% claim to be of “average health or with some complaints” and a further 1.5% “is ill” and still another 0.7% is “very ill". Thus, approximately 7,300 Roma active people are either ill or very ill. Interestingly also, 9.4% of the active Roma population are disabled or chronically ill (nearly 31,000 people). Some information is available on the relationship between degree of illness and ability to work (see Table 6). Finally, and concerning health and safety at the workplace, there is no reference for this.
| Degree of disability or illness | % |
|---|---|
| Disabled and unable to work | |
| Disabled but able to work | |
| Chronically ill and completely incapacitated | |
| Chronically ill and unable to work | |
| Chronically ill but able to work | |
| Total |
Source: “Roma Population and employment”. Secretariado Gitano Foundation. 2005.
5. Policies of workplace promotion and combating discrimination
5.1 Anti-discrimination rules in practice: the field of work
Information not available.
5.2 Public policies
One of the main public policies implemented in Spain concerning the fight against discrimination wass the GRECO Programme (“Programa Global de Regulación y Coordinación de Extranjería e Inmigración” or “Global Programme for the Regulation and Coordination of Immigration”) which was agreed during a Cabinet Meeting in March 2001, for the period 2001-2004. This programme included 72 concrete measures, and its main working principles were the following:
-
Implementation of information campaigns aimed at Spanish citizens, in order to reinforce tolerance and racial acceptance.
-
Integration of foreign residents and their families, through the establishment of guaranteed access to social and individual rights.
-
Regulation of migratory flows in order to guarantee the coexistence within the Spanish society and the improvement of ‘welcome programmes’ for foreign people.
On the other hand, the ACCEDER Programme (2000-2006) intends to facilitate the access of Roma population to the Spanish labour market. During the first 4 years of this project, more than 14,700 work contracts were agreed. In 2004, the European Council, together with the UN-HABITAT (the United Nations Human Settlements Programme), selected this programme as an example of ‘good practice’.
Later on, in the year 2006, a new Plan was approved: the “Roma Development Plan (2006-2010)”, which includes several programs aimed at the labour and social insertion of Roma population, in collaboration with Autonomous Communities, local corporations and representative associations of this collective.
Finally, in 2007, the “Strategic Plan for Citizenship and Integration 2007-2010” was agreed. This plan, supported by Autonomous Communities and municipalities, intends to finance measures developed by regional governments and city councils aimed at promoting the insertion of foreign collectives. This plan is based on 3 main principles: equality and non-discrimination, citizenship and interculturality.
On the other hand, and concerning main organisations involved in combating ethnic discrimination, it is interesting to mention the Spanish Observatory against Racism and Xenophobia (OBERAXE), which reports to the State Secretariat for Immigration and Emigration.
As well as this, there is a ‘State Council for the Roma Population’ (“Consejo Estatal del Pueblo Gitano” in Spanish”), created in 2005 and promoted by the Ministry of Employment and Social Issues. Moreover, it is worth mentioning the foundation Roma Culture Institute (“Instituto de Cultura Gitana” in Spanish), promoted by the Ministry of Culture, and aimed at promoting the ‘gypsy’ culture through the publication of research studies and the implementation of social insertion initiatives.
5.3. Role of the social partners
Social Partners in Spain support the fight for equal labour and social rights and obligations among foreign workers. Thus, for instance, the Spanish Trade Union “Comisiones Obreras” (CCOO) and the ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation have signed a collaboration agreement aimed at improving the access to the labour market of the Spanish Roma population. This agreement, based on the European Racial Equality Directive, intends to implement principles of equal treatment between persons in Social Dialogue and collective agreements.
Collaboration agreements have been also signed at regional level. For example, in the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León, CCOO Trade Union and ‘Secretariado Gitano’ Foundation have signed an agreement through which the Trade Union will offer specific legal services, professional assessment and training programmes for the Roma population.
Interestingly also, since 2003, CCOO Trade Union has implemented in Spain the European campaign known as “Stop labour discrimination”, aimed at informing individuals about their rights concerning employment and vocational training.
On the other hand, in 2010 the Ministry of Equality created a Network of Services to assist individuals suffering from ethnic discrimination. The Trade Union UGT is an active member within this network, fighting against ethnic discrimination in the workplace. As well as this, many entities from the Third Sector take part in this network.
5.4. Role of the labour inspectorate
Not available information.
Commentary by the NC
Massive migration is a relatively new phenomenon in Spain, so the specific issue of “nationals with a foreign background” has not received any attention yet. In any case, it is expected that once these migrant population decide to permanently stay in Spain or have children, this issue will receive a higher degree of attention.
On the other hand, the Roma group constitutes one of the largest ethnic minority groups of Spain, although social and cultural roots within this collective are very diverse. For a long time, Roma individuals have been victims of prejudices and social stereotypes, and many public measures have been applied in order to promote their labor and social insertion, together with the preservation of their culture and traditions. Fortunately, their conditions have improved to a large extent, but there is still much to do against discrimination.
Iñigo Isusi & Jessica Duran, Ikei research and consultancy