LABOUR MIGRATION OR PROSTITUTION EXPORT?

By Eka Gabadadze

Existing in Georgia socio-economic environment turned the emigration of intellectual forces and so called black workers into natural matter as well as immigration of experienced foreign specialists or even of adventurers aspiring to enrich in unexplored extensions. All these leave a huge hole through related legislation – it’s the darkness regulated no way.

It’s not a secret, that many Georgians work abroad, legally or illegally. Their number reaches approximately to million. However, foreigners, arrived for job in Georgia, do only a thousand (uncertified information).
Despite Georgian political layers and media run a huge propaganda to prove the immense interest of West to Georgia, the number of people arrived here indicates to opposite. Reasons, for that, are economic instability and social insecurity or, simply, low life standards.
The history of humanity proved that each working person gives to state reasonably more, at the sight of material gaining, then it accepts for job done. Because of this simple veracity, we may consider and calculate which intellectual and physical resources flow out of Georgia for minimal wages and which interested in specified work foreigners do come here for maximal incomes. If more concretely, foreigners come in Georgia are mostly related to private business. Some are small, some large giving a hope for prosper future. To the opinion of policymakers, all they are to play the serious role in socio-economic restoration of Georgia. Emerges the question: how important is local worker that practically does not respond to the international requirements for foreign investor? Only the Law on emigration and immigration can answer this rhetorical question. It’s a paradox, but this Law still does not exist in Georgia.
Rezo Sakvarelidze, head of Employment and Labour Relations Department: “Labour migration is the darkness regulated no way. On the one side, it has to be done by Law on labour migration that has already been prepared by our department. On the other one, we’re waiting for the Parliament and Government to accept the Law on foreigners’ employment where the employment moment of theirs will be too actual. Instead of employment, prior here will be putting this question on the agenda, as a number of huge projects are going to be implemented, which should give an advantage to Georgian civilians and residents. If juridical regulation of it is not provided then will be late. The Law has to be strengthened, conditions – elaborated, rules – introduced etc. The Law, with its meaning, is too difficult. It probably may be followed by number of subordinate acts. The second important question is labour emigration. As well as the previous, we are also going to change this one particularly. We want to involve private agencies in this. For maximal security of population from both, physical and juridical persons either, their action has to be regulated juridically. It’s not new that, for example, juridical entities, in most cases, are aimed at deluding population, involving them in trafficking, embezzling etc.”
Yet all is on the level of desire and plans, the question of labour migration and emigration is free willed, Law practically does not exist etc. Enacting Laws and leaving them on the paper is not a big trouble in Georgia and everyone knows that. To be sure, our reader can watch the Parliament sittings for even an hour – a number of Laws, subordinate acts, changes? Main here is how the interests of Georgians are foreseen and how real the acts are in practice. Time will show that?