Czech Made? Against Double Standards and Exploitation of Migrants in the Czech Labour Market
The Multicultural Centre Prague has launched the project "Czech Made?" to raise public awareness about the exploitation of migrant workers in various sectors of the Czech economy. The label "Czech made" is commonly used to reassure consumers that products are of the highest quality. The question mark in the title of our project implies that apart from the quality of the products, there is also a difference in the quality of working conditions when comparing Czech to foreign labourer. Migrant workers are often denied fair working conditions and find themselves in situations when their fundamental human rights are violated and work conditions are not properly? maintained in many sectors of the Czech economy. The aim of the project is to stimulate public debate by means of six complementary activities (investigative research, an information portal, seminars, an exhibition, public debates and lobbying). The debate is supposed to lead to the formation of a political strategy which would allow the country to satisfy its need for foreign workers without putting the human and social rights of labour migrants at risk. A wide range of contributors, including representatives of NGOs, representatives of immigrant communities, employees of state ministries, politicians and representatives of the business community, will join the debate.
The central element of the project strategy is investigative research. Within its frame journalists have researched the current employment situation of foreigners in branches of the Czech economy which are characterised by a high percentage of foreign workers. Research results were published in the cultural weekly A2 and also on the information portal www.migrationonline.cz and will serve as a basis for the "Czech Made?" exhibition. With the help of specific life story examples the exhibition informs the public about the exploitation and therefore gives the foreigners an anonymous face. Next to public debates also six one-day training seminars took place for the employees of the departments for work, for employers of foreigners and for representatives of the foreign police. The seminars provided practical information and help with legal employment of foreigners without violating their dignity. Another important module of the project is lobbying politicians and representatives of state ministries based on legislative analyses, the field research of journalists and the information generated from the information portal. Combining research and journalistic methods, the project aims to achieve improvements in the working conditions of migrants in the Czech Republic.
Project partners: Project coordinator:Barbora Stralczynská
Phone: (+420) 296 325 346
The Project is supported by the European Commission and the European Cultural Foundation.