A/HRC/56/54 C. Temporary labour migration and other precarious statuses 59. Temporary labour migration programmes, particularly in agriculture, construction, care work and the service industry, often put labour rights at risk, affecting the ability of migrants and their families to access and enjoy their human rights. 68 This includes the right to an adequate standard of living, including adequate housing and food; the rights to health, social security, family life, freedom of association, freedom of expression and freedom of religion; the right of access to justice; and digital rights. Temporary labour programmes also restrict migrants’ ability to change employers, leading to debt and poor working conditions. Employers also face limitations related to cumbersome and restrictive administrative processes.69 60. In many countries, temporary residence permits, including permits resulting from regularization programmes, often do not provide avenues for a secure and long-term status in a country or do not count towards citizenship.70 D. Asylum-seekers and refugees 61. The rights of asylum-seekers and refugees, as enshrined in international law, guarantee protection from persecution and forbid refoulement. However, tightened border controls inadvertently block safe routes for asylum-seekers, forcing them to rely on smugglers for perilous, irregular passage.71 The harsh realities of such journeys often create trauma and physical injuries, on top of those inflicted in origin countries, severely hindering the ability of asylum-seekers to function in society. 62. Asylum-seekers and refugees frequently face legal uncertainties due to laws and administrative procedures that delay or complicate the attainment of regular status. This uncertainty significantly curtails their rights, access to services, ability to work and capacity to contribute to society. 72 Women in legal limbo are often at heightened risks of labour exploitation, domestic abuse and sexual violence. 63. Serbia reported that refugee identity cards lacked a unique foreigner registration number, leading many service providers, such as banks and health institutions, to disregard the card and deny services to refugees. Refugees also faced difficulties in obtaining travel documents, restricting their ability to move outside the country for work or personal reasons.73 E. Access to labour markets 64. Migrants’ economic impact is often shaped by their ability to access decent work. Whether they have a regular or an irregular status, migrants who are unable to access decent work often face low wages and non-payment or late payment of wages, despite filling essential labour shortages. Although they have similar levels of education, migrants frequently earn less than nationals.74 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 GE.24-07075 See OHCHR, We Wanted Workers, But Human Beings Came: Human Rights and Temporary Labour Migration Programmes in and from Asia and the Pacific (2022). See ILO, Temporary Labour Migration: Unpacking Complexities – Synthesis Report (Geneva, International Labour Office, 2022). See United Nations Network on Migration, “Regular pathways for admission and stay for migrants in situations of vulnerability” (July 2021); and OHCHR Regional Office for South-East Asia, Pathways to Migrant Protection: A Mapping of National Practice for Admission and Stay on Human Rights and Humanitarian Grounds in Asia and the Pacific (2022). Gallagher, “Exploitation in migration”, pp. 65 and 66. See Jean-Pierre Cassarino, Lorenzo Gabrielli and Delphine Perrin, Cooperation on Readmisssion in the Euro-Mediterranean Area and Beyond: Lessons Learned and Unlearned (European Institute of the Mediterranean, 2023). Submission by Serbia. See Silas Amo-Agyei, The Migrant Pay Gap: Understanding Wage Differences between Migrants and Nationals (Geneva, International Labour Office, 2020). 11