Guestworkers and second-class citizenship
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- Date
2010
- Authors
Anna Stilz
- Abstract
This paper takes up the question of rights restrictions for guestworkers from a liberal-democratic perspective. Is it ever legitimate to offer migrants job opportunities in exchange for their agreement to waive rights? If so, are there limits on the rights we can ask guestworkers to give up? I examine three arguments for why rights restrictions on guestworkers should not be allowed: (1) that they require guestworkers to waive an inalienable claim to membership, (2) that they are exploitative, and (3) that they place guestworkers into dominating social relationships in the receiving society. I conclude that none of these arguments can rule out rights restrictions on guestworkers altogether. I then sketch some restrictions that remain permissible even after we take these arguments into account.
- Journal title
Policy and Society
- Volume
29
- Page numbers
295-307
- File Attachments
- Economic sectors
Agriculture and horticulture workers, Occupations in services - Domestic work, Sales and service occupations - general, Trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations - general, Natural resources, agriculture and related production occupations - general, Labourers in food, beverage and associated products processing, Dancers, and Other
- Content types
Policy analysis
- Target groups
Researchers
- Geographical focuses
Canada, United States, Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec, British Columbia, Other provinces, Federal, International Organizations, Nova Scotia, and National relevance
- Spheres of activity
Law, Philosophy, and Political science
- Languages
English