Over the past decades, Lesotho has been a source of, primarily, unskilled migrant labour entering South Africa, with Basotho men working on the South African mines and Basotho women restricted to domestic work. This dissertation examines the experiences of both ‘skilled’ and ‘unskilled’ Lesotho migrants currently living in South Africa. The study aims to establish those factors that are influential in prompting Lesotho citizens to leave Lesotho for South Africa. Moreover, it probes differences and similarities with regard to the work patterns encountered by skilled and unskilled workers as well as establishes the impact which migration has had on the lives of migrants. The literature tends to suggest that skilled workers face fewer restrictions and receive better treatment from management and colleagues in companies, while unskilled workers, on the other hand, may be exposed to considerable harassment, exploitation and poor treatment. This study concurs with the evidence in the literature in finding that unskilled workers are at a greater disadvantage when entering the South African labour market as compared to skilled workers. Moreover, it would appear that skilled workers are benefiting more in terms of their jobs, and in having their expectations met than unskilled workers. For the research participants in this study, xenophobia did not appear to be a serious factor, despite the fact that much public attention has been focused on the situation of foreign workers in South Africa. However, these workers from Lesotho highlighted racism as more of an obstacle than xenophobia. In addition, the study reiterates the popular findings that it is better job opportunities that remain the main motivation behind both skilled and unskilled workers migrating to South Africa with development, growth, training opportunities, mentoring, and interaction with more experienced colleagues also emerging as motivating factors. The discourse of the research participants also revealed social networks to be influential in the acquiring and maintaining of jobs. The study illustrates the relevance of ‘dependency’ theory for building understanding of the reasons why ‘skilled’ and ‘unskilled’ workers persist in migrating to South Africa. Finally, migration remains the ‘coming of age’ for Lesotho migrants, impacting positively on both their lives as well as the lives of their families. AFRIKAANS : Lesotho was tydens die afgelope paar dekades ʼn bron van ongeskoolde arbeid vir Suid-Afrika, waar manlike trekarbeiders gewoonlik in die mynwese werk en die vroulike trekarbeiders beperk is om betaalde huishoudsters te word. Hierdie dissertasie bestudeer die ervarings van ‘geskoolde’ en ‘ongeskoolde’ Lesotho trekarbeiders wat in Suid-Afrika woon. Die studie stel die faktore vas wat besluite rondom trekarbeid beïnvloed, veral díe wat die inwoners van Lesotho motiveer om hul land te verlaat om in Suid-Afrika te gaan werk. Die studie ondersoek boonop die verskille en ooreenkomste ten opsigte van werkspatrone wat geskoolde en ongeskoolde werkers teëkom. Dit stel ook vas wat die impak van trekarbeid op hierdie mense se lewens het. Die literatuur is geneig om voor te stel dat geskoolde arbeiders minder beperkinge ondervind en binne maatskappye beter behandel word deur bestuur en kollegas, terwyl ongeskoolde arbeiders aansienlike teistering en uitbuiting ervaar gepaard met swak behandeling. My studie stem ooreen met die literatuur – ek het gevind dat ongeskoolde arbeiders meer benadeel word as geskoolde arbeiders wat na Suid-Afrika migreer. Geskoolde arbeiders ervaar ook meer voordele ten opsigte van werk en hulle verwagtinge word verwesenlik. Deelnemers van hierdie navorsingsprojek het aangedui dat xenofobie nie ʼn ernstige faktoor was nie, al was daar baie publieke aandag gevestig op buitelandse arbeiders in Suid-Afrika. Vir die Lesotho arbeiders was rasisme ʼn groter struikelblok as xenofobie. Hierdie studie herhaal populêre bevindings dat daar beter werksmoontlikhede in Suid-Afrika is as in Lesotho, en dít is steeds die hoof motivering waarom geskoolde en ongeskoolde arbeiders daarheen migreer. Verdere motiverende redes was geïdentifiseer, naamlik: ontwikkeling, groei, opleidingsmoontlikhede, mentors, en interaksie met meer ervare kollegas. Die Lesotho arbeiders se besprekings het dit duidelik gemaak dat sosiale netwerke ‘n groot rol het in verband met werkwerwing en behouding daarvan. Hierdie studie illustreer die toepaslikheid van ‘afhanklikheidsteorie’ wat bydrae tot die begrip waarom geskoolde en ongeskoolde arbeiders na Suid-Afrika migreer. Laastens is migrasie steeds ʼn soort mylpaal vir Lesotho trekarbeiders en dit het ‘n positiewe impak op hul, en hul families se lewens. Copyright / Dissertation (MSocSci)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Sociology / unrestricted

Department of Sociology / MA (Industrial Sociology)

The diploma thesis deals with the Special Work Visa (SWV) as a tool to solve the problem of the shortage of unskilled workers in agriculture, forestry and food labor market in the Czech Republic. This instrument of economic migration came into effect in December 2019 under the Czech Government regulation No. 291/1999 on special work visas for citizens of Ukraine working in agriculture, food or forestry. The main goal of this diploma thesis is to compare the practice with the newly introduced SWV with its intention - getting foreign workers into the country in a faster and easier way. The next goal of the thesis is to analyze the formation and conditions of obtaining a Special Work Visa. The third goal is to find out how was labor migration developing after 1989 and the third one is to discover the current trends of employment policy for foreigners in the Czech Republic. The thesis uses primary and secondary data and uses the dual labor market theory which explains the reasons for labor migration. The research part draws on semi-structured expert interviews. The work first analyzes the problem of labor shortages in the Czech labor market and deals with the establishment of Special Work Visa. It further analyzes in detail the goal, conditions, criteria and procedure of the SWV acquisition process....

Income inequality is prevalent in both developed and developing countries. In all of these countries there are workers who are highly paid while others are given very low wages. The disgruntled low-paid workers in these countries usually force their governments to intervene in the labour market and introduce the redistributive policies like the minimum wage policy. Governments usually accede to these demands of low-paid workers because they do not want to invite political troubles. That led to an increase in the number of countries using minimum wage policy as redistributive mechanism in the late 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century. Minimum wage policy is, however, a very controversial issue. Supporters of minimum wages regard the policy as ideal because it provides social protection to un-unionised and low-paid workers with little or no bargaining power. The opponents of the policy on the other hand argue that wages in the labour market should be determined by the forces of demand and supply. It is argued that wages that are artificially determined lead to the rationing of jobs and displacement of the very same low-paid workers that the policy is intended to protect, as employers are forced to replace unskilled workers with skilled workers and machines. South Africa’s agricultural sector workers were among some of the least paid workers in the country. Employers were able to exploit these workers because they were not protected by any labour legislation that workers in other sectors were afforded. Farm workers were only protected by common law. It was only in the 1990s that labour legislations like Basic Conditions of Employment Act, Labour Relations Act, Employment Equity Act, Extension of Security Act and Tenure Act and Skills Development Act were extended to the agricultural sector in an attempt to protect the working conditions of vulnerable workers. These acts as well failed to improve the working conditions of the agricultural sector workers and that prompted the Minister of Labour to instruct the Director-General of Labour to conduct the necessary investigations to see if it could be necessary to introduce minimum standard of employment in the sector, including minimum wages. That led to the adoption of Sectoral Determination 8 of 2003 which introduced sectoral minimum wage in the sector. The sectoral minimum wage which came into effect in 2003 was increased annually by the rate of inflation plus one per cent. It was only in 2013, after the Western Cape farm workers went on strike for higher wages, that the minimum wage was raised by 52 per cent. As argued by the opponents of minimum wages, job losses occurred among unskilled workers. The implementation of minimum wage policy in the agricultural sector was problematic, as the policy was not properly complied with due to several compliance concerns. Apart from there being insufficient inspectors to monitor and investigate cases of non-compliance, inspectors were under-trained and under-equipped. Fines imposed on offenders were too small, which further encouraged disregard for the policy. / Economics / M. Com. (Economics)