The Migration and Labor Question Today Imperialism, Unequal Development, and Forced Migration

Abstract

It is impossible to disentangle the migration and labor question today without a deep understanding of the nature of contemporary capitalism, namely, neoliberal globalization. One of the main features of the new global architecture, boosted by the emergence of one of the most distressing global crises since the Great Depression, is the assault on the labor and living conditions of the majority of the global working class, and in particular the migrant workforce, which is among the most vulnerable segments of this class. This essay will analyze some key aspects of the system that contemporary migration is embedded in, with emphasis on the process of segmentation and the growing precariousness (precarization) of labor markets worldwide. The aim is to unravel: a) the re-launching of imperialism (policies of global domination) in search of cheap and flexible labor, as well as natural resources from the South; b) the growing asymmetries among and within countries and regions; c) the increase and intensification of social inequalities; d) the configuration of a gigantic global reserve army of labor associated with the emergence of severe forms of labor precarization and exploitation; and e) the predominance of forced migration as the primary mode of human mobility under conditions of extreme vulnerability.