Apologies for cross-posting

The EWERC (European Work and Employment Research Centre) at the University 
of Manchester is delighted to announce the details of its third annual 
symposium, which will take place on Friday 16 November 2007.  

The work of cities and regions: contemporary experiences of migrant workers

What is the thinking behind the organisation of this symposium?
When the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, 
Slovakia and Slovenia – the ‘accession eight’ -- acceded on 1 April 2004 
there was uncertainty over what this would mean for the UK’s urban and 
regional labour markets. According to recent findings (UK Home Office 
2006), almost half a million workers from these eight countries have 
registered for employment in the UK since 1 April 2004.  Perhaps 
predictably, the bulk of these workers found their first jobs in lower-
paid occupations, most earning just above the national minimum wage.  60% 
have been working in the following positions: ‘factory worker’, ‘warehouse 
operative’, ‘packer’, ‘kitchen and catering assistants’ 
and ‘cleaner/domestic staff’.  In the longer term it is not clear whether 
some will move up the job ladder, into higher paid positions, stay trapped 
in the most insecure and routine of jobs, or will return ‘home’, and use 
their experiences and financial gains to influence the economic trajectory 
of their countries.  

UK cities and regions are, of course, no stranger to migrant workers.  
Historically, migrants have played important roles in the economic growth 
these cities and regions have experienced.  While the likes of Leeds, 
Manchester and Newcastle cannot claim to be ‘global cities’ like London, 
where migrants constitute 35% of the working age population, certain 
sectors of their economies do appear to be increasingly reliant on migrant 
labour, as those arriving most recently in the UK have found themselves 
inserted into radically restructured urban and regional labour markets 
(May et al 2006; Datta et al. 2006).  The ‘post-industrial’ economies of 
the twenty first century are highly unequal and segmented ones.  As 
manufacturing employment has declined, so the number of workers employed 
in the service sectors has increased.  Much of this growth has taken place 
at the bottom of the labour market, in often poorly paid and precarious 
jobs, in those public and private sector reproductive sectors – caring, 
cleaning, and hospitality – essential to keep cities and regions ‘working’ 
(Evans et al 2005). 

This one day symposium will explore the cultural, economic and social 
experiences of migrant workers from the ‘accession eight’ countries, as 
they go about labouring and living in the UK’s cities and regions.  It 
situates these contemporary accounts in the context of past waves of 
migration and draws connections to the current experiences of migrant 
workers from other parts of the world.  It argues the issues that are 
raised – in terms of the paid and unpaid labour of migrant workers – are 
increasingly important, in light of the emphasis the UK government is 
placing on the role cities and regions must play in increasing the 
competitiveness of the national economy (HM Treasury 2003).  It brings 
together academics from across the social sciences, alongside a number of 
activists and policy-makers, in the format of a small number of formal 
presentations and a closing roundtable discussion.   

Who are the speakers? 
Dr Bridget Anderson (Senior Researcher and Programme Head, COMPAS, 
University of Oxford), Dr Samantha Currie (Europe in the World Centre, and 
the Department of Law, University of Liverpool), Dr Alison Stenning (Co-
Director of the Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies, and the 
Department of Geography, University of Newcastle) and Professor Jane Wills 
(Director of The City Centre, and the Department of Geography, Queen Mary 
College, University of London). 

Who will speak in the roundtable discussion? 
Catherine May (Programme Coordinator, UK Poverty Programme in England), 
Dave McCall (North West Regional Secretary TGWU and Chair of the North 
West Migrant Workers Institute) and Simon Pemberton (Merseyside Social 
Inclusion Observatory)

What is the symposium schedule? 
Tea and coffee will be served from 11 o’clock, and the symposium will run 
from 11.20 through to about 5 o’clock, with a short lunch and afternoon 
coffee break.  More details on the scheduling of speakers will be 
available nearer the time.

Where will the symposium take place?  
It will take place on the tenth floor of the Harold Hankins Building at 
the University of Manchester – maps can be found at 
http://www.manchester.ac.uk/medialibrary/maps/campusmap.pdf

What is the cost?
Attendance is free, thanks to the generous sponsorship of the Jean Monnet 
Centre of Excellence 
(http://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/jeanmonnet/) and the Brooks 
World Poverty Institute (http://www.bwpi.manchester.ac.uk/) but please 
book in advance as places are limited.  

Who should I contact for further details or to book a place? 
Kevin Ward, Co-Director of the European Work and Employment Research 
Centre, and Professor of Human Geography at the University of Manchester 
(http://www.sed.manchester.ac.uk/geography/staff/ward_kevin.htm). His e-
mail is [log in to unmask]