States that need migrant labour to function but don’t want to accept immigration find themselves in a constant bind. They effectively want doors to be open and closed at the same time.
Temporary workers, many policymakers hope, offer a way to square that circle. They dream of a system where sufficient numbers of people (but no more) arrive legally, accept that personal freedom will be constrained for the duration of stay, and leave at an appointed time – ideally before they need to access healthcare or get included in net migration statistics.
It’s an enticing, have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too sort of proposition, so of course there have been attempts to put it into practice. Many countries have operated temporary migration programmes (TMPs) for years, and in recent times we’ve seen renewed interest in the idea. With anti-immigrant sentiment growing in many countries, policymakers are increasingly wondering if TMPs might offer a way forward.
