Recent Polish migrants in London: language, housing and employment

1
Recent Polish migrants in London language,
housing and employment

• Louise Ryan, Rosemary Sales, Mary Tilki and
  Bernadetta Siara (Middlesex University).
• This study is funded by the ESRC

2
Contact

• Dr. Louise Ryan, Social Policy Research Centre,
  Middlesex University.
• L.ryan_at_mdx.ac.uk

3
Background

• EU expansion (May 2004) has had a marked impact
  on the levels of migration to Britain.
• While, the subsequent arrival of tens of
  thousands of Eastern European workers was in many
  ways unanticipated, it has been broadly welcomed
  as a boost to the labour force.
• These migrants were generally perceived as
  temporary and transient.

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Number of arrivals

• There is wide variance in the estimated numbers
  of arrivals from Poland.
• 264,560 Poles registered with the Workers
  Registration Scheme between May 2004-June 2006.
  However, many more have arrived without
  registering with the WRS.
• E.g. many self-employed people such as builders
  are not reflected in these figures.

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Concerns Homelessness

• As has been the case with many previous waves of
  migrants, there was a lack of structural planning
  in relation to the social needs of these new
  migrants.
• Concerns have recently been raised about
  inadequate housing provision leading to, in some
  cases, homelessness and rough sleeping among
  Polish migrants.

6
Homelessness

• the problem of homelessness is increasing among
  this group and services are struggling to cope.
  The situation needs to be tackled by the Polish
  and British governments (Alastair Murray,
  Housing Justice, (Sept. 2006).

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Crime

• There have also been concerns that Polish
  migrants are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse
• A spokesperson for Westminster council said
  weve seen plenty of cases of rogue gangmasters
  taking liberties with vulnerable individuals

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Aim of our presentation

• Based on our research with recent Polish migrants
  in London, we will explore issues around
• language
• employment
• housing
• Access to information

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Methods

• 11 Key informants interviews People from
  community organisations, other voluntary agencies
  and the Polish Church.
• Three Focus groups Polish Saturday School,
  Polish Mothers at a mother and toddler group, and
  a group of students.
• Individual interviews 30 interviews with men
  and women of varied ages and occupations.

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Language

• Almost all of our respondents said the biggest
  difficulty facing Polish migrants is language.
• Many of our respondents (including graduates)
  arrived in London with little or no English.
• Oh, it was terrible, I studied German in Poland
  for 11 years, I only knew such basic stuff like
  yes, no, good morning. I barely knew anything. I
  spent first 3 months in the kitchen, I kept
  cleaning, because of no English (Aneta, aged 21)

11
Working below qualifications

• Because of language difficulties migrants could
  find themselves working below their skills
• Kasia (aged 26) says as a graduate, its hard to
  adapt to working below your qualifications.
• I am a graduate, and I know I could do more
  responsible things, but unfortunately I couldnt,
  because I couldnt communicate with anyone and I
  had to start from the very bottom, and it was
  horrible for me. (Marek 30)

12
Being regarded as stupid

• everyone thinks that if you are from Poland
  that I dont know, they are surprised that we
  are graduates and educated and it doesnt get
  through to them that there are many Poles here
  who are graduates everyone thinks that we must
  be thick, stupid that we are doing these sorts
  of jobs (Dominika teacher in Poland, waitress in
  London).

13
Stereotypes of Poles

• Positive stereotypes
• Poles are perceived as good employees (Tomek)
• hard working people (Andrzej)
• Negative Stereotypes
• Polish people are taking jobs, working for less
  pay (Inga).
• you are Polish, you are for cleaning (Marysia)
• You come here to steal all the health benefits
  (Magda)

14
Learning the language

• Several of our respondents attended language
  classes, though a few complained that they had to
  wait many months to enrol on a course I was
  supposed to start in June, but I was informed
  that I wont go in June and only in September.
  And the courses should start quicker, I think so.
  If someone wants to learn, they shouldnt wait
  for so long for school, because you have to wait
  for half of a year, it is a very long time
  (Marysia aged 25).
  

15
Access to language classes

• However, some people found it difficult to attend
  classes either because they felt too old to sit
  in a class of young people or because they could
  not get time off from work. my main problem
  is that I cant attend any English language
  course because my work most often finishes
  around 8.00pm, and I cant attend courses like
  that (Jola aged 57)

16
Living and working in a Polish world

• the biggest problem is the language. Many Poles
  dont know the language enough to feel free in
  this society I met people here, who dont have
  any contacts with non-Poles, they are in a group
  these people live in a completely unreal world
  they dont know what is happening around them
  (Czeslaw medical professional)

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Employment

• Our respondents varied across a wide range of
  occupations including students, professionals,
  skilled and unskilled.
• Most agreed that their job opportunities, pay,
  conditions and standard of living were far better
  here than in Poland.
• Several described life in London as stress-free
  in comparison to the struggle to make ends meet
  in Poland.

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Exploitative working conditions

• Nonetheless, several described exploitative
  working conditions, job insecurity and in some
  cases having to pay a deposit to secure a job.
• I think that Englishmen terribly exploit Poles.
  We work our arses for their benefit, and they
  will give you 3 per hour (Malgorzata cleaner).
• Tadeusz said Poles are regarded as Cheap Labour
  

19
Low Pay

• Aneta who works in a hotel said We recently
  discovered that as Poles we get less than others.
  We started to argue. Well see if they change it
  or not..
• Marysia employers exploit Poles horribly in
  terms of workI worked in a shop and I was
  terribly exploited. I got 100 for a weeks work,
  I worked 9 hours a day I didnt have a contract
  

20
Paying Deposits to secure a job

• Yes, I had to pay 200 for work, I worked in a
  factory (Marysia)
• Tadeusz who works in construction said I was
  working for a man, he was taking deposits it is
  hard to get back the deposit. It depends on a
  person, who takes the deposit, but usually you
  dont get it back

21
Deposits

• Mikolaj (aged 25). My first job was in a car
  wash. The job was hard, because the car wash was
  open 24 hours a day, you have worked for 12
  hours, since 7 until 7. He exploited us terribly
  with deposits, he paid little, and there was a
  lot of work and it was really hard.

22
Accommodation

• Most of our respondents found accommodation
  through networks of friends and relatives
• So when I came for the first time, I had two
  friends here, who came a month earlier and were
  renting a room and they reserved it for us, for
  me and other friends (Kasia).

23
Shared flats

• Almost all were in the private rented sector
  often sharing accommodation with large numbers of
  other people
• We used to live with 11 people in one
  apartment4 bedrooms sharing two bathrooms, well
  one was just a shower room. (Marzena).
• This was not unusual.

24
Insecure housing

• Many people rented sublet flats which meant they
  could be asked to leave at short notice
• the person who rents to us, she rents it from
  someone else, she wasnt the owner, but her
  contract was running out and she said that we all
  have to leave this house and so we had to find
  something (Agnieszka).

25
Homeless

• Amelia and her husband found themselves on the
  streets when they were evicted from an illegally
  sublet flat.
• When Hanna left her job as a live-in nanny she
  found herself homeless and on the streets. She
  relied on the hospitality of other Polish
  migrants who gave her temporary refuge.

26
Access to Information

• It was widely agreed that Poles had problems
  accessing information in Britain
• People dont know where to go, where to start.
  (Bozena)
• we dont know answers to some questions, we are
  getting contradictory information (Patrycja)
• I didnt have here in London people if I had a
  problem I dont have such a person, who I could
  ask, who could advise me (Marek)

27
Accessing information

• people found info in different ways
• our main information centre was the Job Centre
  and all the leaflets which we found there
  (Patrycja)
• the Internet, forums and Polish newspapers
• networks of friends and relatives.
• Access to information was influenced by language
  skills.

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Knowing your rights

• Far from abusing the benefit system, many of our
  respondents did not know what they could claim
  Poles dont know their rights here, because they
  came from PolandThey have more rights here, but
  they dont know, and often they lose a
  lot(Hanna)
• The lack of knowledge about how the welfare and
  legal systems worked meant that some migrants
  turned to private companies for help.

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Information services

• Staszek told us about information services that
  advertise in Polish newspapers, they supply info
  and assistance with form filling for a fee.
• Bozena used such a service for help with getting
  Child Benefit I was afraid to apply on my own
  for a child benefit, it might have taken 5
  minutes when she filled in this form and 50.
• But when Iza approached one such service about
  residency she found they were of little help.

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The Need for More Information

• Many of our respondents spoke of the need for
  more information for migrants I think that
  many people need helpsuch information centres
  that would give out information where one could
  sort out somethingfree-of-charge would be good
  because there are Poles, they cant speak
  English because the main problem is the
  language, so it would be good to open such an
  information centre, I think many people would use
  it (Bozena)

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Policy Implications

• government policy has viewed these migrants as
  temporary workers and little or no provision has
  been made for their wider social, educational,
  familial and housing needs.
• Many are reliant on services and support from
  within their own community and this has made
  them vulnerable to exploitation.
• Housing, employment and languages were the main
  issues highlighted by our respondents.