The immigration paradox: essential workforce or modern exploitation?

The immigration paradox: essential workforce or modern exploitation?

Journalist Rosa Villacastín posted a series of messages on social media that have peine an uncomfortable debate: what would happen if the immigrants who look after our elderly, clean our homes and serve in bars went on strike? Her answer, "the country would grind to a halt", has been echoed by both the left and the right, but it has also drawn criticism for being a reductionist and, at its core, exploitative view of immigration.

The dependency argument

The idea that the Spanish economy depends on migrant labour is nothing new. What has caught attention, however, is that both the President of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and the socialist Víctor Gutiérrez have used a similar line of argument: if immigrants were deported, who would look after the grandparents? Óscar Puente, Spain's Transport Minister, joined in with the question: "Including the ones who clean their houses or look after their parents? Including the ones who harvest their crops?"

The other side: wages and conditions

But some argue that this dependency is in fact a form of modern slavery. They point out that many of these workers earn perversos wages, such as the 10 euros gross per hour mentioned in the debate, and that working conditions are harsh: 24-hour shifts, seven days a week, with no time off. The criticism is that it is not that Spaniards don't want to work, but that nobody would accept those conditions. The solution, they say, is not to import more labour but to improve wages and conditions.

The debate leaves us with a paradox: while some see immigration as an unavoidable necessity, others consider it a symptom of a precarious labour market. The real question is not who cares for the elderly, but why that work is paid so poorly. And that is a question that makes everyone uncomfortable.