Migrant women struggling to get work permits

Female migrant workers are being left in a bureaucratic limbo, unable to secure a work permit through legal channels despite their desire to work.

Diana Tudorancea, a mental health officer at the Migrant Women Association says women are facing hurdles and red tape to obtain a work permit. “For asylum seekers especially, a work permit is extremely difficult unless they have refugee status,” she said. “Applying at Jobsplus for these women brings an onslaught of issues that are not properly explained.”

Work permits tend to be the least concern for EU nationals in Malta, but for female asylum seekers and other migrant workers, Tudorancea said the situation is radically different.

“You would have to assume that these people are, in the first place, trying to sort out living arrangements, with children dependent on them, or they may suffer from something actively preventing them from working… even without these problems, applying for a work permit in Malta brings with it a host of problems, most of which are not even correctly explained, most of which are not even properly understood. It can be a huge task, a huge source of worry for women,” Tudorancea said.

In 2018 Jobsplus received 27,636 work permit applications, a good number of which pertain to foreign workers.

But Tudorancea warned that migrant women face problems that are much more deeply rooted. “Malta currently doesn’t offer these women something systematic in terms of English language training, integration or education – for instance, a course offered to them when they arrive in Malta or while they are living in open centres.”

Tudorancea said migrant women who hail from African and Middle Eastern countries also tend to come from highly patriarchal societies, usually fleeing from acts of gender-based violence. That would usually mean that they arrive in Malta with a lower level of education than men.  “In impoverished communities, families tend to favour men in terms of education. So that leaves women disadvantaged, from the get-go.”

Additionally, once in Malta, migrant women are also facing the prospect of high rents. “Women will either not leave the open centres, or group together with other women to find accommodation.”

Tudorancea said that in a worst-case scenario, migrant women living inside open centres are probably suffering from a recent trauma, had not had access to education, probably have kids, and generally are facing a very tough situation. “It is virtually impossible for them to find a job, move out of the centre, and go to live inside an apartment. That’s why we end up having situations where ten people are paying for a three-bedroom flat, often being exploited by landlords.”

She adds that women are not able to leave open centres and this situation puts the administrator in a difficult position, since they do not have the resources to accommodate new people. “Ideally people should be leaving open centres. But there should be a system, such as government-assisted housing separate from open centres, so that women have the opportunity to start working and paying taxes, and in the process free up space for new arrivals.”

Additionally, migrant women will probably have arrived in Malta without the ability to drive.

“Women can be limited in trying to better themselves by the mere issue of transport. NGOs that offer classes to migrants do not offer childcare. So, a mother of three who lives on a government subsidy of about €200 a month, will have to take her children with her to class and pay for each trip for all. This situation becomes virtually impossible: women have to choose between food and a bus ticket. Of course, most would pick food.”

Such a precarious situation for these women often leads to grave mental health issues. Depression is a common problem among migrant women. “Depression ends up being the number one killer of integration. Women get tired of everything, and they revert to trying to survive, and then much of the integration efforts and the skills that could have been used are lost.”

Even women who arrive in Malta with an education, end up frustrated when they realise that their diplomas and degrees are not recognised, that they are unable to get their papers from home, are unable to speak English, and are unable to put into practice the jobs they were trained to do. “It impacts negatively on the trust these women have towards the system. Eventually, some women give up, and that’s a very normal psychological response for someone who’s been struggling for a long time.”