Unemployment In general, migrants arrive eager to work in their destination countries, holding good qualifications.
Nevertheless, thousands of migrants seeking work remain unemployed.
In South Africa, the unemployment figure for migrants is especially high--at around 22 percent.
For those in the Diaspora, unemployment is mostly a structural problem, not a personal failing.
It is a problem created by the social and economic structure of the destination country.
Unemployment is a problem for immigrants who hold no legal entry documentation.
This is a huge issue in South Africa, where most of the migrants have entered the country through illegal entry-points.
Without legal immigration status, migrants are barred from the legal labour market, as well as from health care and social services.
In the UK, the situation is similar for those who are undocumented, as well as for those seeking asylum.
Migrants whose asylum cases are still pending are prohibited from working or receiving benefits.
As a result, many are leading difficult, desperate lives.
While asylum seekers in South Africa are allowed access to the labour market and social benefits, obtaining the proper papers is difficult and accessing the services is challenging.
Consequently, many asylum seekers in South Africa are in a similar position to those who hold no legal documents at all--both are excluded from legally obtaining an economic livelihood.
Not having access to legal employment leaves migrants in peril--they are forced to look for work in the unregulated labour market or shadow economy, (working "under-the-table") which puts them at risk for low pay, poor working conditions, employer abuse and arrest or deportation by the authorities.
At this point the migrant is "forced into a corner" and start experiencing anger.
For example, in South Africa's unregulated labor market, undocumented migrants are often the victims of employment scams.
One common practice favored by unscrupulous employers is to hire migrant workers and then, come payday, notify the police to deport the employee instead of paying them.
If they are unable to find work in the irregular labor market, migrants often have to resort to criminal activities in order to survive.
In the UK, a growing number of migrants are being drawn into illegal activities in order to gain a viable income, especially in online scams and jobs in the sex trade.
Economists and sociologists note that forcing migrants to work in the unregulated labor market not only harms the individual migrant but also the host economy, which does not recover taxes from these workers.
As such, denying migrants legal employment is not just a problem that harms migrants, it also has negative effects for the entire society.
Downward Occupational Mobility and Under-Employment Some migrants are highly trained and educated yet often end up doing work far below their qualifications.
Too often, entry into the Diaspora is accompanied by downward occupational mobility and chronic under-employment.
Like unemployment, downward occupational mobility and under-employment are problems rooted in the structure of the host society, not due to character deficits on the part of the individual migrant.
Migrants (especially temporary or seasonal ones) tend to act as a large and flexible reserve labor pool that shrinks and grows as the economy of the host country fluctuates.
It is largely the task of this reserve pool of labor to accommodate the boom and bust cycle of capitalist economies and also to do the unpopular jobs in society that natives refuse to do.
Furthermore, unskilled labor (both migrant and native) is especially suffering due to the changes occurring in Western economies, as skilled labor drops down the occupational ladder and starts to snatch up unskilled jobs.
Migrants are reacting to global economic fluctuations and are experiencing a general downward trend in occupational mobility.
Those that are unskilled are competing with natives for a dwindling number of jobs while those that are skilled find themselves forced to take jobs beneath their qualifications simply in order to survive.
Some migrants start exploring ways to stop building up the anger to the point where the anger is overwhelmed by up-skilling themselves or changing professions altogether.
For example, in a survey of Zimbabweans in South Africa and the UK, 38 per cent reported that they were deskilled in their current jobs.
In the UK, many migrants holding higher degrees end up working in warehouses, or as domestics, cleaners and carers.
In South Africa, those with teaching degrees or training in the trades were not using their qualifications, having ended up instead in jobs in agriculture as unskilled laborers.
Across the globe, many in the Diaspora work in jobs where conditions are poor, hours are long and the pay is low compared to what natives are making.
Unable to utilize their full talents and skills, many migrants feel frustration and a sense of feeling trapped.
Xenophobia, Stereotyping and Structural Racism As the migrant population in Diaspora grows, so too does xenophobia, stereotyping and structural racism grow in the countries that host the migrants.
It is an unfortunate fact that every society possesses a faction of people who feel economically and culturally threatened by a large group of visibly identifiable migrants.
Negative stereotypes and racism flourish under such an atmosphere, and this often leads to hostility toward migrants and in some cases, even violence.
The migrants are seen as somehow "beneath" the native middle-class standard and will often experience discrimination based upon these stereotypes.
Discrimination can be social in nature (for instance, in the case of marginalization) or economic, whereby a migrant is denied access to housing, employment or various services.
In North America, as well as in the UK and South Africa, unwanted attention or harassment by police and other authorities is common and in many cities, has become a fact of life for migrants.
Ironically, in South Africa, Zimbabweans are stereotyped not as being below native middle-class standards but as exceeding those standards.
Zimbabwean migrants have gained a reputation for being hard working, loyal, well educated laborers and hence, South African natives accuse them of stealing jobs, housing and even women.
Here, xenophobia has taken on a more vicious form.
Thieves roam about, making a profitable living preying upon nave Zimbabwean newcomers, who are highly visible targets on the streets of South Africa.
Even worse, violent mob attacks have become more common--reports of rape, murder and the burning of foreign squatters' villages are on the rise in the last few years.
Frightened by the effects of the hatred and violence against foreigners, native South Africans are painting their names on doors to distinguish themselves from foreigners so they will not be accidentally targeted for attack.
With no end in sight to the numbers of immigrants pouring into South Africa, it is unlikely that the xenophobic violence against Zimbabweans will end anytime soon.
Another obstacle that migrants must deal with in predominantly white countries is structural racism--an invisible form of institutionalized racism that prevents people of color (or of a particular ethnicity) from assimilating into and advancing further within the native society.
Structural racism is due to barriers that are built into the social and economic structure of the society that inevitably put power into the hands of white people.
Even when highly trained, it is common for migrants to end up in dead-end, ghetto-ized jobs, with low pay and low status.
Upward mobility is blocked by glass ceilings and gatekeepers--the invisible apparatus within commercial, industrial or government organizations that prevent migrants from advancing into positions of power.
As Norah Spie states: "The ceiling for immigrants is very low, so one can hit it fast then become stuck in the rat race..
..
In the UK, its more of institutional racism whereby, they will only give out the 'good' jobs to immigrants if they really have no choice like teachers, nurses, engineers, etc.
There are very few immigrants working in Corporate, media, etc.
" Structural racism systematically creates disparities in pay and can block individuals from accessing goods, services or various opportunities open to others within the society.
Even those government or business organizations whose official public platform is "color-affirmative" may still unwittingly suffer from structural racism.
Because of its illusive, covert and systematized features, structural racism can be highly frustrating to pinpoint, cope with and challenge on an individual basis.
Further, structural racism is complicated by gender; sexual discrimination in the workplace means that men and women will fare differently in their economic outcome while living in Diaspora.
In general, immigrant women end up in jobs that are lower paying than jobs occupied by immigrant men.
Women also typically end up in positions as carers and domestics--live-in jobs that leave women vulnerable to sub-standard working conditions and employer abuse.
Men, too can experience sexual discrimination, as when male nurses or carers are denied employment.
Health, Happiness and the Hierarchy of Needs A common tendency amongst new members of the diaspora (who have suffered lack of food and basic amenities for a long period of time) is to focus upon achieving the fundamental basics of economic existence.
The assumption made is that once there is access to a job, a place to live and consumer goods, then all of life's problems will be solved.
Unfortunately, this is not usually the case.
Those familiar with the popular psychological theory of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs will recall that once an individual's basic needs for food, shelter and safety are met, higher order psychological and spiritual needs begin to surface, demanding attention and fulfillment.
Those in diaspora are not likely to be prepared for this, and may be surprised by the impact that these psychological and spiritual needs make.
Failure to fulfill these needs can result in a sense of dissatisfaction with life, along with feelings of depression, stagnation and despair.
The model of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs suggests that on the road to self-actualization (achieving one's maximum potential in life) every human being requires certain needs to be met in a series of stages.
Identity, growth and a sense of purpose are achieved by satisfying each stage in the series.
Once basic lower-level physiological needs are fulfilled (such as eating, drinking, sleeping and breathing), then the next level of needs must be fulfilled.
The second level of needs revolve around the issue of safety and include the security of the body, employment, resources, health and other safety needs.
Most migrants in the Diaspora are hyper-focused upon this level of needs.
However, those that have successfully fulfilled the safety level of needs in their lives then begin to feel an internal pressure to realize the next level of needs for love and belonging.
Friends, family, love relationships and sexual intimacy fall into this category.
Beyond this stage is the level concerning esteem needs, which includes such things as achievement, recognition, self-esteem, confidence and receiving respect from others.
Only when the lower stages are fulfilled can the individual move on and achieve the final state of self-actualization, which refers to an ideal state of morality, practicality, tolerance and creativity.
As we have seen from the previous discussion of psychosocial and structural economic barriers that migrants face, Migrants in Diaspora not only have great challenges meeting physiological and safety needs but also love/belonging and self-esteem needs.
Isolation from family back home and from fellow migrants or natives in the new host country can block them from satisfying needs in the love/belonging level, while marginalization, unemployment, downward social mobility/underemployment, structural racism and other barriers to social and economic advancement can block their self-esteem needs.
According to this model, then, true self-actualization and fulfillment is withheld from many migrants; living up to their true maximum potential can be difficult to do, simply by virtue of their residence within the Diaspora.
At this point, one may very well ask the question: with all the difficult issues facing migrants today, is it still possible to be happy living in Diaspora? Fortunately, the answer is yes - it is still very possible for migrants to lead a happy and fulfilling life while living abroad.
The next few chapters present some ways for those living in Diaspora to combat their problems, climb up the hierarchy of needs and maximize their full potential so that they can begin to lead more joyful and satisfying lives.