Migrant labor a ticking time bomb in Greece

Shaimaa Yahia

Greece has already got out of its economic crisis which lasted for eight years. Unemployed is down in the European state and so are debts.

These improving economic conditions are opening the door for the presence of employment opportunities in the Greek market. Foreign labor has always been a tool for raising production. The same force also turned into a curse for the natives of the countries where this labor works.

Low rates

Greece occupies a space of 130,000 kilometers. It is inhabited by 10.4 million people. It suffered a rise in joblessness which sometimes reached 28% of the work force. This compounded the country’s other economic hardships.

Greece had to get labor from other countries because of its small population and the presence of a small number of people in their productive years.

The Greek population is expected to come down even more in the coming years.

Greek economy

The ports sector continued to be the main driving force of the Greek economy for a long time. Greece is made up of a large number of islands in the southeastern part of Europe. These islands heavily depended on the loading and unloading of cargo and fishing.

Greece controlled 16.25% of maritime trade for the past hundred years. It owned almost 40% of the European maritime fleet.

Different nationalities

Greece was an important meeting point for migrants from different countries for a long time in the past. It received Afghans and Iraqis. Nonetheless, most of the migrants came from Turkey and Syria. This was why Syrians dominated the Greek labor market.

Demographic structure

The flow of refugees and migrants into Greece and Europe is changing the demographic makeup in them. Muslim migrants will most likely get married to Christian European natives. This opens the door for fears from the spread of Islam and the elimination of the European identity.