A/HRC/29/36 European Union could streamline the number of migrants coming through irregular means. Coupled with entry and exit controls and other supporting initiatives, multi-year and multientry visas could incentivize migrants to come to the European Union for work and return to the country of origin while respecting visa conditions. For such a plan to be successful, the European Union and its member States will need to considerably reduce underground labour markets and exploitation in the workplace over the coming decade, as they act as a magnet for irregular migration at the request of exploitative employers: tougher labour inspection mechanisms and stronger labour unions will be needed to achieve such results. 70. Fully sustaining the implementation of a human rights-based framework for regular migration across the European Union therefore involves: increasing search and rescue capacity; facilitating access to justice for migrants; developing alternatives to detention; reinforcing labour inspection mechanisms needed to ensure the rights of all workers in the European Union, including migrant workers; creating massive resettlement programmes for refugees; and creating multiple labour migration visa opportunities to incentivize migrants to use regular migration channels. 71. The successful implementation of this policy mix requires challenging the many intersecting and negative perceptions of migrants and migration that have pervaded European Union debates, discourses, policies and politics. The strict conceptual delineation between internal and external migrants, demonstrated by the freedom of movement within the Schengen region and the securing of external borders, conflicts with a human rightsbased framework for migration that is based on equality and non-discrimination. This distinction also rests on the assumption that sealing international borders is possible, which the unsustainable status quo strongly shows is not the case. 72. The view of migrants among many stakeholders as “illegal” is counterproductive and is not based on facts or the provisions of international law. While migrants who come to the European Union without documents are in an irregular situation (or “undocumented” or “unauthorized”), they have not committed a criminal act. The conceptualization of irregular migrants as “illegal” has undoubtedly played into the use of immigration detention. It has also had an impact on the general public’s perception of migrants, legitimizing policies that are not in line with human rights guarantees and contributing to xenophobia and discrimination. 73. The common conception that migrants are “job stealers” is also a harmful fantasy. Much economic literature (see Card and Peri3) has highlighted how migrants complement rather than compete with citizens, therefore creating greater overall productivity within the economy. A 14-year study (Peri and D’Amuri4) into the effects of non-European Union migration on 15 Western European countries showed that by taking manual jobs, migrants pushed natives towards more highly skilled and better-paid jobs. In that study, a significant increase in more complex skills among natives following migration was noted. The labour market adjusted with no significant impact on natives’ employment rates. The impact of the global recession was shown to decrease but not eradicate this positive phenomenon, debunking the argument that an economic downturn justifies repressive policies. 74. Similarly, conceptions of migrants as “a burden” are not based in reality, nor are they productive. Much European Union debate focuses on the need to share the “burden” of 3 4 14 David Card, “The impact of the Mariel Boatlift on the Miami labor market” (1990); Giovanni Peri, “Immigrants’ effect on native workers: new analysis on longitudinal data” (2015); Andri Chassamboulli and Giovanni Peri, “The labor market effects of reducing the number of illegal immigrants” (2015). Francesco D’Amuri and Giovanni Peri, “Immigration, jobs and employment protection: evidence from Europe before and during the Great Recession” (2012).