Bulgarian Immigration and Community Cohesion in London and Brighton

Eugenia MarkovaHellenic Observatory, London School of

EconomicsRichard Black

Sussex Centre for Migration Research, University of Sussex

Bulgarians in the UK - what’s known

Bulgarian immigrants in the UK: made the headlines in spring 2004 – the alleged visa scam

Bulgarian immigrants: dramatic re-appearance in the press in summer 2006

October 2006: limited access of Bulgarian & Romanian immigrants to the UK labour market after EU accession

Legal routes of entry to the UK labour market

Since 1994: self-employment visas under the European Community Association Agreement (ECAA)March 2002-March 2005: 2,422 ECAA visas

Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme (SAWS) 2005: work permits issued to 2,867 Bulgarian nationals

The Sector Based Scheme (SBS) 2004: work permits issued to 1,424 Bulgarian nationals

The High-Skilled Migration Programme (HSMP)2002 (start of HSMP): 6 applications approved to Bulgarians; 2005: 40 applications approved.

Background

This presentation on Bulgarian immigrants in the UK is extracted from a large survey of five non-EU nationalities:Albanians, Serbians, Russians, Ukrainians and Bulgarians and long-term residents, living with them in the same neighbourhoods

Localities: two London Boroughs of Hackney & Harrow, the City of Brighton & Hove

Field work: June-November 2005 Quantitative survey: 388 new immigrants [85

Bulgarians] & 402 long-term residents In-depth interviews

Study localities The London Borough of Hackney: inner-

London Borough; population of just over 200,00; phenomenal ethnic diversity; GLA Ethnicity index – third most diverse local authority in the UK

The London Borough of Harrow: outer-London Borough; population of just over 200,000; fifth nationally in terms of proportion of non-white residents; a third of residents born in 137 different countries; 2,040 born in EE

The City of Brighton & Hove: South coast; low rate of ethnic diversity; predominantly white population

Immigration and community cohesion: a key relationship

Main concern: experience of Bulgarian immigrants in the UK - labour market, their broader interaction with local communities, and the issue of community cohesion

Operationalising community cohesion: employment, education, housing sense of ‘belonging’ in the neighbourhood and

in the UK extent to which diversity is respected expectations for the future participation in community activities

Bulgarians coming to the UK Peak years: 2003 & 2004

N=35 (41%) Couples rather than

single men: N=57 (67%) married or had a partner

N=45 (79%) of partners in UK, the rest – in Bulgaria, usually women

N=45 (79%) of partners of Bulgarian origin; N=12 (21%) - other ethnicity

N=41 (48%) with dependent children; Most of them in UK

Year of arrival in the UK

20052004

20032002

20012000

19991998

19971996

19951991

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Legal status

Temporary, with a right to work 42% (N=36) Dependents 18% (N=15) Permanent residents 17% (N=14) ‘Semi-legal’ 8% (N=7) Student 6% (N=5) Temporary, not allowed to work 5% (N=4) Undocumented 5% (N=4)

Reasons for coming to the UK More than half in the sample left Bulgaria for economic

reasons: ‘not earning enough’ (29%)

‘could not see any prospects for improvement of economic conditions’ (13%)‘unemployed’ (4%)

Bulgarians came to the UK because of:‘ease of entry’ (45%)‘family and friends in the UK’ (37%)

‘studies’ (8%)NONE OF THE BULGARIANS IN THE SAMPLE CAME BECAUSE OF WELFARE BENEFITS

Education

Educational background No qualifications – 1% (N=1) Secondary education or college – 47% (N=40) University or above – 52% (N=44) Most of Bulgarians in the sample had

completed education in their origin country

Language skills on arrival

More than two thirds of Bulgarians in the sample reported ‘none’ or ‘basic’ level of English on arrival

A quarter spoke no English at all

More Bulgarian women (46%) than men (23%) reported ‘fluent’ or ‘adequate’ English on arrivalLevel of English on arrival

NoneBasicAdequateFluent

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Current English language skills

More than three quarters reported ‘fluent’ or ‘adequate’ current level of English

These are self-reported levels of competence

83% of Bulgarian women reported ‘fluent’ or ‘adequate current level of English, compared to 74% of menCurrent level of English

NoneBasicAdequateFluent

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40

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Housing

Almost three quarters of Bulgarians interviewed lived in private rented housing in all three localities

Owner-occupiers – 12% (N=10), residence in UK=5- 10 yrs

Common routes for finding accommodation – family, friends, other Bulgarians (44%); letting agency (28%)

Living with non-family members (NFM)– 57% (N=48, of them: 23 living with another 1-2 NFM; 19 – with 3-5 NFM; 6 – with 6-10 NFM)

Labour market (1)

Employment prior to the UK Professions varied: from doctors, accountants,

midwifes, nurses to tennis coaches, fitness instructors, shop-owners, taxi drivers and locksmiths

Not all were in employment – 28% students, 4% unemployed

Just under a quarter worked in another foreign country – 10 different countries; mainly, Germany, Greece, Libya=> most “first time emigrants”

Labour market (2)

Bulgarian immigrants’ first employment in UKMain sectors: construction (men); personal services (women); hotel & restaurant sector (both men & women)

Bulgarian immigrants’ current employment:Never worked – 11% (N=9); mainly women - dependantsVery high employment rate – only 1 unemployed Majority in full-time employmentSelf-employed – 20% (N=15, 4 – through an agency)Only 4 working illegally, in agriculture & construction; 7 – ‘semi-legal’, in health, personal services, hotels and constructionJobs: 50% - process, plant & elementary occupations; 20% - managerial, professional; 16% - administrative & skilled trades; 15% - personal services

Labour market (3) Finding & changing employment

Most important way for finding first/current job – ‘through other Bulgarians’ Two thirds working for a White British employer; 11% - for a SEE employer; 9% - another Bulgarian

Wages24% (N=15) of economically active earning below £5, the National Minimum Wage RateNo men working below £4 an hour, just 2 womenLow wages prevalent in Hackney and less so in Brighton

Labour market (4)

Working hours:Bulgarian immigrants were more likely than the other groups in the study to work over 45 hours per week; more women than men.Those with permanent status were more likely to work longer hours.Only 8% of economically active Bulgarians were doing more than one job.

Membership of a trade union:Bulgarians – the only immigrant group in the survey without a single trade union member

Cohesion in diverse communities (1)

Sense of ‘belonging’• Belonging to the neighbourhood

Real lack of identification amongst Bulgarians and the other immigrant groups surveyed with the neighbourhood they were living in (two thirds of Bulgarians felt they did not belong to it)

• Belonging to BritainMore than half of Bulgarians felt they belonged ‘strongly’ or ‘fairly strongly’ to BritainBulgarians in Brighton with weakest sense of belonging to Britain: N=18, 62% felt they did not belong to Britain, compared to 7 (24%) in Hackney and 10 (35%) in Harrow

Why this weak feeling of belonging to neighbourhood?

Weaker belonging in Britain because of stronger belonging in the home country?

• Belonging to Bulgaria95% (81) belonged, 59 (70%)– ‘very strongly’; 4(5%) – felt they belonged not very strongly to BulgariaThose in Brighton – weaker sense of belonging to Bulgaria than those in London

• Belonging to the BoroughBelonging to Borough stronger than belonging to the neighbourhoodBulgarians in Brighton more pessimistic about belonging than those in London (only 2 in Brighton felt ‘fairly strongly’ to the City, 11 – in Hackney, 12 – in Harrow)

Other factors affecting neighbourhood belonging

Of those who would return to Bulgaria soon, just 15% with return plans in the next three years said they belong compared to 57% without return plans

Bulgarians with children in the UK; home owners and men – stronger sense of belonging

Language ability, occupation, age and legal status – not associated to belonging to the neighbourhood

Valuing diversity

Three measures are usedWhether the individuals believed that:a) their neighbourhoods are places where people get on

well togetherBulgarians had the most positive stance in the survey about this – 81%

definitely agreeing or tended to agree with this proposition; this was much lower for the other groups in the survey; 83% in Hackney, 69% in Brighton

b) neighbourhoods are places where people help each other

c) And, frequency of talking to neighbours

‘Neighbourhood is a place where people help each other’

Bulgarians were much more positive than the other groups in the survey – one in three agreeing with it; Albanians – most pessimistic

Bulgarians and Russians in the sample – less likely to report they talked to neighbours frequently; 17 Bulgarians (20%) never talked to neighbours; 5 (6%) – never spoke to local people; they had no children, recent arrivals

Interactions between immigrants and long-term residents At one extreme – marriage and co-habitation

Most of Bulgarians (84%, N=48) with a Bulgarian partner; just 7% (N=4) with an English person

Role of social networks75% of Bulgarians (N=64) had friends from a different ethnic group, usually former socialist countriesIn case of a problem – more than three quarter relied on their partners or Bulgarian housemates, relatives or friends; 3 said ‘nobody to help’

Cooperation at workAlmost all working Bulgarians believed people at work respected each other; only 3 said they did notMore than half were working with people from other ethnic groups; only 8 (11%) working with other Bulgarians

Expectations from life in the UK Stable job to pay for a decent living ‘quiet life’“I like my life in the UK, that’s why I have chosen to live here. I want a quiet life and to be able to travel

with my family everywhere in the world-I want everything that a normal person wishes to achieve”. (Bulgarian, Hackney, M, 28)

Plans to return to BulgariaBulgarians with higher intentions for return than the other

groups in the sampleThose in Brighton more likely to returnFew Bulgarians felt the return was imminent; more than

half did not know when, only 2 with a fixed date‘Earning enough money’ and ‘improvement in the

economic situation in Bulgaria’ – the most important factors for return

Community participation Whether people feel they can influence decisions at local

levelJust a quarter of Bulgarians felt they could do soA quarter had undertaken action to solve a local problem (contacted the appropriate organisation, local radio, MP)

VolunteeringOnly 3 (4%) Bulgarians had volunteered in the last 12 months compared to 30% Ukrainians, 31% Serbians, 27% Russians, 26% Albanians

Involvement in groups, clubsMore than half of Bulgarians (55%) involved in clubs, mainly sports clubs; none of the Bulgarians – members of a political party or religious organisationBulgarians and Russians – more likely to be members of an ethnic community group

Conclusion

Bulgarians in the selected localities in UK differed significantly from those in Athens, Greece and Madrid, Spain: better educated, more families with children than in Greece but less than in Spain

Bulgarians that arrived in UK in 2000 and after were competing in a more crowded labour & housing markets since East European immigration had grown

Stereotypes of Bulgarians - potential welfare dependents, Albanians - linked to organised crime and Russians - wealthy newcomers interested in football are very wide from the mark

A better image would be of hard working individuals supporting their families

Should the government, and civil society pay more attention to East Europeans?