Policy responses to unauthorized or irregular workers

Conclusions

Managing migration is one of the key challenges facing nation states in a 21st century marked by closer connections and rising inequality between countries. In a world in which travel and tourism are becoming a major industry, and in which wages across borders can be 20 or 30 times higher, there are increasing incentives to cross national borders for employment. The industrial countries, which have about 12 percent of the world's labor force but 60 percent of the world's migrants, are struggling with the best ways to respond to rising numbers of irregular workers. Most responses are some combination of prevention, interior enforcement, and legalization: the challenge is how to include the fourth element, cooperation with migrant countries of origin.