Migration and Sustainable Development in the EU : A Case Study of the Seasonal Workers Directive

Most discussions of the EU’s development agenda that emphasize the social

dimension of globalisation in general or labour rights and standard in particular tend

to focus on either trade agreements or aid. However, in 1999, the EU explicitly linked

migration to its development objectives, and in 2011, the European Commission

launched the Global Approach to Migration and Mobility (GAMM), which lists

‘maximizing the development impact of migration and mobility’ as one of its four

pillars. A distinctive feature of the GAMM’s approach is that migrants are placed at

the centre and their human rights are to be mainstreamed throughout the migration

cycle.

To what extent is the GAMM’s commitment to migrants rights being put into

practice? How does the GAMM’s emphasis on migrant’s rights impact upon

development? Using the recently adopted Seasonal Workers Directive as my focus, I

will attempt to address these questions. First, I will examine the extent to which the

Directive protects migrant workers’ human rights and ensures that they have access

to meaningful labour standards. Second, I will explore the extent to which the

Directive facilitates circular migration, which is seen as a key component of

development-oriented migration. Third, I will consider the relationship between this

Directive and Mobility Partnerships, which are the EU’s key instruments for linking

migration to development, when it comes to migrant workers rights and circular

migration.