Romanian, Bulgarian Workers Remain Europe’s Personae Non Grata – Paper

Romanians and Bulgarians are still not seen as full-fledged citizens of the European Union, as many member states continue to keep them away from their labor markets, mainly due to the economic turmoil that seriously affected their economies, German daily Der Speigel wrote on its website.

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A European Commission review recently said that a large number of European Union countries, including the Netherlands, would maintain their labor market restrictions citizens for recent EU newcomers Romania and Bulgaria, the paper said.

"First we have to protect jobs for our own workers," Phil Woolas, British minister of state for borders and immigration, said in a statement.

The European Commission argued, based on research presented in November 2007, that the fear and panic that the arrival of Romanians and Bulgarians will trigger extra job losses are not at all grounded.

The Commission said workers from countries which joined the EU in 2004 and 2007, such as Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, have not led to serious disturbances on the labor markets of other EU states, stressing they even contributed to economic growth without “eliminating” local workers or affecting their wages.

Arjan Heyma of Amsterdam research agency SEO, which studies the impact of Eastern Europeans on the Dutch economy, said the Dutch Parliament is concerned about the increasing jobless rate in the economic sectors affected by the financial turmoil, such as constructions or industry, adding, however, the effects of economic migration from Eastern Europe are "on average marginal."

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