The minister of Employment announced plans to recruit workforce from Southern Europe. The initial idea was to open job placement offices in Italy, Spain, and Portugal. In the autumn, we will know if they proceed with the initial plan or come up with an alternative method.
The number of Southern Europeans in Denmark has increased by more than four times in the past 12 years. In 2011, there were 2093 Italian workers, 1186 Spanish workers, and 522 Portuguese workers. Today, there are 9365 Italian workers, 5847 Spanish workers, and 4064 Portuguese workers.
One of the trade union leaders of 3F says, “We have known for a long time that many southern Europeans would like to come to Denmark to work on orderly wages and working conditions. Unfortunately, employers have often turned a blind eye, to instead focus on easier access to foreign labor from third-world countries“
