China Has Foreign-Worker Problem, Too
BusinessWeek (08/11/10) Einhorn, Bruce
China is thought of as a country with an endless supply of cheap labor, but few are aware that the country has its own problem with illegal foreign workers. A recent report in the South China Morning Post says that officials in the Guangdong province are considering new regulations on undocumented workers from neighboring countries. A new labor law that requires higher pay and benefits for Chinese workers has many employers looking for foreign workers who will accept lower pay and poor working conditions, according to reporter Ivan Zhai. Government officials in Guangdong have long been hoping to move the local economy away from reliance on low-wage labor, and that has begun to happen as companies like Foxconn are moving away to other parts of the country.

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Foreign Workers Clambering to Denmark
Copenhagen Post (07/29/10)

Many Europeans are going to Denmark for the summer to work, as the pay there is high even for unskilled jobs. About 24,000 EU residents have already registered with state job recruitment portal WorkinDenmark, though there are only 1,800 summer jobs open. Before the recession there were just 10,700 foreigners registered in the portal. The majority of those registered this year are Romanians, followed by workers from Poland, Bulgaria, and Spain. “This year has been very different, with people coming here to the office, calling us and sending us frustration-laced e-mails,” said Lise Lotte Brandt of EU job portal Eures. “They’ll do anything for anything, just to come to Denmark.”

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Drinking Ban for Dubai Expats
Telegraph.co.uk (08/11/10) Hyslop, Leah
Drinking has been banned at all British bars and sports pubs in the Al Barsha area of Dubai between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., as many bars that served long brunches with unlimited alcohol were clashing with Dubai’s strict Islamic laws. The ban was first imposed on just one British pub, but now applies to all in the Al Barsha area and could be extended to other areas. "It is a very strict rule and some officers without uniform are on patrol to see if the rules are being obeyed,” said one police officer. “If people are still serving we can shut the pub and hit them with a big fine.” Alcohol is strictly licensed in Dubai, permitted only in licensed bars and hotels and even residents must obtain licenses to drink in their homes. Expats, however, commonly drink at all hours of the day, particularly on Fridays, and the FCO advises Britons in Dubai to “respect local laws and traditions at all times and beware of your actions to ensure they do not offend others’ cultures and religious beliefs.”

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Dubai Exodus on Hold as Expats Feel Heat
Financial Times (08/09/10) Kerr, Simeon

Many expatriates in Dubai are opting not to visit their home countries this summer due to worries about losing their jobs, while others are dealing with legal disputes. The troubled property developer Nakheel, for instance, has limited vacations to five days for managers beyond the level of department head, according to employees. The policy could last to the end of September, when Nakheel expects to restart construction on six projects in the wake of a government recapitalization. Some Dubai expatriates have been prevented from traveling due to probes into alleged misconduct. Nicholas Warner, a marketing executive, has had his passport held by police after he defaulted on his credit card with the United Arab Emirates' (UAE's) largest bank, Emirates NBD. The move led to a criminal charge and subsequent arrest of Warner, who says he wants to pay off part of his debt but is prevented from doing so by the bank. Research by Datamonitor indicates that more than a fifth of expatriates in the UAE have failed to meet credit card or loan repayments over the past year. Meanwhile, dozens of executives at state-backed institutions have been barred from leaving the country as UAE authorities pursue a long-standing case involving the return of allegedly illegal bonus payments or money obtained from financial violations.

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Industry Backs Calls for Foreign Skilled Workers to Enter Germany
MonstersandCritics.com (08/03/10)
While a proposal from German Economics Minister Rainer Bruederle to offer “welcome money” to skilled foreign workers was batted down by Chancellor Angela Merkel this weekend, U.S. companies are saying that there are still too many obstacles to bringing foreign workers to Germany. Over 25 percent of respondents to an American Chamber of Commerce in Germany survey said the biggest obstacle is government red tape, and the Chamber said the requirement that foreign workers take frequent professional exams is more onerous than in other European countries. Other obstacles are Germany’s refusal to recognize driver’s licenses from several U.S. states, complicated tax laws, and integration of migrant workers, according to survey respondents. Strong economic growth and declining employment in Germany has many in the business sector concerned about a skills shortage—indeed, there was a 31.3 percent increase in job vacancies in the past month.

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Roadmap to a Safe Stay
Security Management (07/01/10) Harwood, Matthew

Traveling employees face a number of risks, from the everyday pickpocket to the infrequent terrorist attack. To address these corporate risks, companies need to gauge the threats and have a program that gives employees the security training and support they need to navigate the dangers. Terrorism and political unrest were cited as the top concern by 44 percent of corporate security and risk managers, followed by natural disasters, petty theft and crime, and kidnap and ransom, according to a poll conducted jointly by International SOS and Control Risks. Security professionals mention high-risk countries such as Indonesia, Russia, and Saudi Arabia, but also cite Canada and Australia as risky locations, due to their support of the U.S. war against al Qaeda. A typical travel risk policy should contain three components: protocols, training, and contingency plans. Corporate protocols should be flexible to account for different regions and the unique risks they engender. Bill Anderson, group director of global security for transportation company Ryder System Inc., and his department have tiered security policies for locations based on three risk levels: high, intermediate, and low, he says. Travel training programs should include tips on how to blend in in foreign environments and avoid being conspicuous as business professionals. Finally, no amount of planning can eliminate all risks, so companies should devise contingency plans for situations in which events take a turn for the worst. In the event of a terrorist attack or coup, for instance, "There should be a good extraction protocol and procedure in place to get the employee out of that location in the safest way possible," says Will Geddes, managing director for the U.K. firm International Corporate Protection, a corporate security service vendor.

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Wyclef Jean to Run for President of Haiti
Time (08/06/10) Padgett, Tim
Haitian-American hip-hop star Wyclef Jean has declared his candidacy for the presidency of Haiti, likening himself to a contemporary Moses of the Haitian diaspora who will bring his country into the 21st century. While some may dismiss his plans as mere performance art, many say he has a solid chance and should be taken seriously, especially as his celebrity status will be quite meaningful to a country where half the population is under age 25. Whether he wins or loses, though, he could build a bridge between Haiti and its expatriates, which many say is vital for the country to move forward. International aid experts say Jean epitomizes the education, capital, entrepreneurial drive, and love for Haiti that most expatriates have, and their help will be necessary for Haiti to thrive. And many Haitians are excited about his candidacy even though his French and Creole are rusty. “Given the awful situation in Haiti right now, most people don't care if the President speaks fluent Creole,” says Marvel Dandin, a Port-au-Prince radio broadcaster. If nothing else, his candidacy will keep the focus on Haiti’s ongoing problems, which include more than a million homeless, tons of shattered concrete, and massive tent cities that will soon be hit by hurricane season.

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Iran Expatriates Get Chilly Reception
New York Times (08/07/10) Young, William
The Iranian government brought several highly-skilled and highly-paid expatriates home last week for a three-day Grand Conference of Iranians Living Abroad, aimed at repairing the country's image abroad and winning back some much-needed capital. But all did not go as planned, as hard-liners branded the expats as traitors and some clerics were offended by a featured musical performance that had women playing alongside men. As a result, an event aimed at repairing the country's image did exactly the opposite--it showcased the very problems that led expats to leave in the first place and publicly exposed the country's bitter divisions. Indeed, the IMF said in 2007 that Iran has the worst problem of brain drain of any country in the world, and some estimate that 20,000 highly skilled Iranians leave each year because of government policies. “Right now relations between the government and the Iranian-American community are at the lowest point they’ve ever been, as a result of the conduct of the Ahmadinejad government, especially since the election,” said Trita Parsi, a U.S.-based scholar. “A conference here or there will not make any difference in that larger picture.”

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Drop in Number of Japan's Foreign Workers Amid Economic Crisis
Guardian (UK) Messmer, Philippe
Brazilians are the third-largest group of foreigners in Japan, but many are going home as the economic crisis has dried up their employment opportunities. In 2009 the number of Brazilians in Japan dropped by 14.4 percent, to 267,450, and their departure is largely responsible for the overall drop in the number of immigrants to 2.2 million, a level not seen since 1961. The majority are nikkeijin, or Japanese whose ancestors moved to Brazil after 1908, and more than half are factory workers. They were the first to be laid off when the crisis hit in 2008, and unemployment within the group went from 5 percent to 40 percent after the crash. Jobless levels have now stabilized, but there are still far fewer Brazilians and the government may now make it harder for them to return as part of a five-year plan for immigration control. Minister of Labor Masahiko Yamada said the crisis brought “a deep realization of the social and economic costs that come with accepting foreign workers.” Japanese are now being encouraged to take low-skilled jobs once performed by foreigners, and some say that bringing more young people, women, and seniors into the job market will help stabilize the population.

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State Eyes Tax On Kuwaiti, Expat High-Earners
Arab Times (07/28/2010)
The Kuwaiti government may impose new taxes on high-income Kuwaitis and expats in the country and eliminate taxes for middle- and low-income citizens, it was reported in Al-Arrouiah. Under the new law, which has reportedly been written but not yet sent to the National Assembly for approval, expats with valid residence permits for up to 183 days in a year will be subject to taxes while Kuwaitis making less than KD34,000 will be exempt from tax. There may be exemptions for companies for profits from agricultural facilities and free trading for three years, and from income from translation, writing, and individual shares. There will also be five-year exemptions for income from state properties, industrial projects, and inherited structures.

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Philippines Suffering from Migrant Brain Drain
AFP (08/05/2010) Macaraig, Mynardo
Recently, 25 Philippine Airlines pilots left their jobs to take higher-paying ones abroad, signifying the major brain drain the country is currently suffering. While the stereotype of Filipinos abroad has been as maids and laborers, the recent trend is for the country’s most skilled and talented workers to migrate—scientists, engineers, doctors, tech specialists, and others are among those leaving. Calling it a “skills hemorrhage,” Vicente Leogardo of the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines says the main problem is that salaries abroad can be three to five times those offered at home, which is difficult to resist or to match at home. Civil engineer Paris Chuchana left the Philippines in 2008 and took a job in Singapore that pays five times the maximum salary he could receive back home, and he says he enjoys a lifestyle that has less government corruption, better infrastructure, and fewer natural disasters. About ten percent of the population works overseas, sending home 17.3 billion dollars, or about 10 percent of the country’s GDP. This helps the nation’s economy, but the loss of so many skilled workers is a much bigger cost. The government is looking for ways to raise salaries and benefits without hurting local competitiveness, but many some industries say current salaries are already too high.

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Singapore Plans for New Wave of Immigrants to Help Economy's Growth
Guardian (UK) Beaugé, Florence
Singapore’s economy is booming with 18 percent growth for the first half of the year, and the government is trying to attract as many as 100,000 foreign workers to help cope with the growth. The IMF forecasts the country’s growth to be 12 percent this year, but it is aiming for up to 15 percent of GDP. The presence of immigrants is a sensitive subject in Singapore, and officials are trying to prepare citizens for a new wave of foreigners. “If we don’t allow foreign workers in, you are going to have overheating,” said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. “We have to accept that.” Just six months ago the government said it planned to reduce dependence on foreign labor, and labor minister Lim Swee Say says the 100,000 workers that will be brought in will have to be more skilled than those in the past.

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In South Africa, a Push for Industrial Growth
New York Times (08/02/10) Saltmarsh, Matthew

South Africa traditionally has been considered an unstable business environment for outside businesses, with the country's economy overly dependent on natural resources. However, a new generation of entrepreneurs is optimistic that South Africa is their key to success. Several companies are working in areas like energy, aviation, engineering, military contracting, and mining, hoping to benefit from positive growth forecasts for the region. The country hopes this trend will spur job creation and other benefits, and has been offering direct financing and other incentives. South Africa has many hurdles, including unemployment, crime, illegal immigration, corruption, income inequality, and health problems, but executives and officials believe that the environment is improving and the country's recent success as host of the World Cup will act as a catalyst for additional success. "There has never been a greater opportunity for South Africa than today," says Ivor Ichikowitz, a South African of Lithuanian descent who runs Paramount Group, an aerospace, security and military contracting company. A recent report on the country by Jane's World Defense Industry says that the military budget has dropped in recent years as the government puts more focus on social programs. Mining accounts for almost a tenth of South Africa's output, but when compared to the rest of the continent, the country has a well-developed manufacturing system that accounts for over 50 percent of the country's exports.

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Higher U.S. Visa Fees Would Hit Indian Firms
Wall Street Journal (08/06/10) Sharma, Amol; Johnson, Keith

Indian firms that outsource tech workers could be hurt by a new bill passed in the U.S. Senate that would boost fees for skilled-worker visas. The legislation would require that any company with more than half its employees on H1-B or L-1 visas pay thousands of dollars in new fees for each worker, which could cost Indian companies as much as $250 million in human resources costs. The biggest U.S. firms like Intel and Microsoft will not be affected as far fewer than 50 percent of their workers are foreign, but all Indian companies will be affected and will be lobbying against the law, according to Som Mittal, president of Indian tech trade group Nasscom. "It seems like indirect protectionism," he said. Infosys agreed, saying calling the bill a tax "being levied on a discriminatory basis when the need is to open markets to make companies more competitive in the global marketplace."

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