EUROPEAN MIGRATION IN TIMES OF CRISIS: THE INCREASING IMPORTANCE AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC INTEGRATION OF SOUTH EUROPEAN MIGRANTS IN THE UK

Migration from the European Union to the UK has become increasingly important in recent years. Since the beginning of the economic crisis in Europe in 2008, which has had a disproportionately negative impact on unemployment rates in many Southern European countries, migration from Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain (GIPS) to the UK has been growing steadily. In fact, biggest proportional increases in migration numbers to the UK between 2008 and 2013 have been from the aforementioned countries. By statistically analysing the UK Labour Force Survey 2014, this paper shows that on average migrants from GIPS countries are young and highly skilled, with many working in professional occupations. However, there are important nuances to this with regards to income levels, gender and even the period when migrants have arrived in the UK. There are also many GIPS migrants with high qualifications who cannot fully draw on their qualifications and are working in jobs for which they are overqualified. This also has important ramifications in terms of their potential to contribute to social and economic innovation.