Trapped in migrants’ sectors? Polish women in the Icelandic labour market
| Date | 01 February 2017 |
| Author | Anna Wojtyńska,Joanna Napierała |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/imig.12295 |
| Published date | 01 February 2017 |
Trapped in migrants’sectors? Polish women
in the Icelandic labour market
Joanna Napierała* and Anna Wojty
nska**
ABSTRACT
The employment-driven migrations from Poland to Iceland have largely been pioneered by
Polish women. They outnumbered men among Polish residents in this country until the eco-
nomic boom since 2005 triggered large-scale male immigration. This trend slowed down with
the outbreak of the financial crisis, as the recession severely affected the male-dominated con-
struction industry. The analysis of Polish female migrants’working experiences shows that
recent inflows are mainly shaped by the nature of labour demand as well as the social policies
and care services in Iceland. Although economically integrated, compared with native women
Polish women tend to occupy rather disadvantaged positions. They seem concentrated in a few
low-skilled occupations that bring little prestige and low income. On the other hand, they were
less affected by the financial crisis, in the sense that many of them maintained work, though
some experienced lowering of salaries or reduction of working hours.
INTRODUCTION
Although the migration of Poles to Iceland dates back to the 1970s, it was the political transforma-
tion in Poland along with an emerging demand for workers in Iceland that increased this migration
flow. Since 1990, the number of Polish migrants in Iceland has been rising slowly but steadily.
However, restrictive migration rules and protective labour union policies have constrained the levels
of inflow. By signing the EEA agreements, which came into effect in 1994, Iceland accepted the
principle of free movement of workers within the European Union. Nevertheless, even after Poland
joined the EU in May 2004, Poles were still required to hold permits to work in Iceland, which
typically were assigned to the employer. These restrictions were eventually lifted in May 2006
when Iceland fully opened up its labour market to citizens from new member states. Consequently,
the substantial change in migration policy laws, coupled with the fast economic growth, boosted
the inflow of Polish workers to a level not seen before. Within just four years, the Polish popula-
tion more than tripled, reaching 6,500 in 2007 (Statistics Iceland). Initially women outnumbered
men as a result of social and labour market changes in Iceland, which generated a higher demand
for a female workforce. Between the years 2001 and 2005, the gender share became almost equal.
However, the economic boom and expansion in the building industry attracted large groups of Pol-
ish construction workers, mainly to the capital region. Consequently, in 2007 men made up 73 per
cent of the total Polish population in Iceland. This changed again after the outbreak of the financial
crisis in Iceland. As the recession resulted in severe contractions in the male-dominated building
industry, larger numbers of Polish men than women decided to leave the country, which brought
* Centre of Migration Research, University of Warsaw, Warsaw
** University of Iceland, Reykjavik
doi: 10.1111/imig.12295
©2016 The Authors
International Migration ©2016 IOM
International Migration Vol. 55 (1) 2017
ISS N 00 20- 7985 Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
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