KOFI Koranteng has earned the accolade “Burger”. Anyone who has stayed in Europe or elsewhere abroad for some time is referred to as Burger by a section of Ghanaians. The title is the short form of Hamburger as a resident of Hamburg in Germany would be called.
In the case of Kofi, also known as KK, he has worked in Spain and the United Kingdom for years. For the past eight years KK has been back home in Ghana supervising his housing and agriculture projects using cash earned from working abroad. Kofi, however is planning to go back to the United Kingdom.
He revealed the idea to his childhood friend, Kwame Danso, who engaged him in a conversation all day about the future prospects of working abroad this time round. Kwame’s foremost concern was that he heard machines were taking over the work of humans in Europe. With a smile, jokes and a glimpse of hope, KK took time to explain issues at the labour front in the wake of technological advancement in developed countries.
To begin with, it is a fact that robots are being used in many industries. In the automobile industry for example, it is robots that do all manner of hard physical jobs. Despite the automation of repetitive tasks human beings are still employed to do the more intricate ones.
Naturally, there is the genuine fear of certain jobs becoming redundant, even in Ghana. Take for examples, the introduction of Automated Teller Machines, paperless port operations and packaging of manufactured products in factories, all leading to thousands of job losses. Similar fears existed at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the eighteenth century. Yet it turned out that not all jobs became redundant. Indeed existing jobs were enhanced and new ones emerged altogether.
As to whether competition for jobs would not be keener considering the workforce of host countries, KK explained that automation did not affect all sectors of the economy equally. He said he had worked in a hotel while in Spain. There, he was at the housekeeping department. Apart from the hoover which he used to clean the floor, all other operations were manual.
Then in the United Kingdom he worked in the construction sector. Though machines did the preparation and conveyance of materials, there was a plethora of tasks for human hands. Should he return to the United Kingdom, he would either continue working in construction or go to the security sector.
Kofi continued to shed more light on the labour market in developed countries. The market has two segments. There is one that requires high-skilled workers and the other requiring low-skilled labour with low wages. Citizens of developed countries usually do not want to take up jobs in the latter which is also labour-intensive. This creates vacancies for migrant workers to fill.
The assurance of availability of jobs did not prevent Kwame from asking more questions. He wanted to know the compelling reason why Kofi wanted a return to Europe. This was against the backdrop that Mr. Koranteng has a good social standing in the community. Residents requested him to represent them in the local government system in the District Assembly.
Kofi opened up to his good friend on this matter. His children were young. Even though education was free up to the senior high school, tertiary education remained very expensive in Ghana. Kofi foresaw no means by which his children could acquire university education.
“Can you make enough money in a low-wage labour market in the UK?” Kwame asked. The answer was an emphatic ‘yes’. “The difference between wages in developed countries and those of developing countries is quite big. Ayishetu, the nurse, was able to take her two daughters to join her and attend school in UK. Moreover foreign exchange rates enhance whatever amount of money sent back home in the form of remittances”. KK tried to prove.
Kwame had the impression all along that migrants were always welcomed to Europe. He however, could not reconcile that view with reports of constant harassment, detention and deportation of migrants along the Mediterranean coast.
In response, KK clarified that those were irregular migrants. They neither possess any travelling document nor work permit. They travel through unapproved and unsafe routes across Sahara Desert and Mediterranean Sea. Moreover they arrive in Europe in large numbers. Such movements have to be regulated.
The United Nations, World Bank, International Organisation for Migration and International Labour Organisation are the major stakeholders that regulate human migration. The plight of these non-documented migrants have become the concern of these international bodies and receiving countries. In previous and current dispensations, the world is fighting poverty everywhere and leaving no one behind as enshrined in the Social Development Goals. An African proverb states: “If you cry for the chick, cry for the predatory hawk too”. Workers’ rights are therefore protected all over the world by national laws and international conventions.
The meeting between the two friends began yielding an unintended result. Kwame became convinced and wished he too could travel abroad and work but not without some reservations. He wanted information on how to break into the upper-tier job market in Europe and whether foreigners are not discriminated against.
Mr. Koranteng has proved to be an ambassador of labour migration. He reiterated the high managerial, technical and digital competences required in the higher rungs of the labour market. It is also the area most affected by technological advancement. Here, workers merely supervise production processes using Artificial Intelligence, automation and other new trends without actually exerting themselves physically.
On discrimination, KK never experienced any major incidence. He however, doubted if European citizens and immigrants were paid equal wages for work of equal value. On the other hand, KK has recognized equal accessibility and affordability of health care at the workplace.
The two friends deliberated at length on all the issues at stake and recommended the following actions to would-be migrant workers in Europe:
- Mobilise enough funds from home to cushion them till they get a job
- Acquire passport and visa before embarking on the journey
- Obtain work permit on arrival
- Target hospitality, construction, agriculture and care-giving sectors for jobs
- Improve on their skills, especially digital skills through continuous education
- Invest heavily in their children’s education for brighter future of work for their heirs
In their thoughts, Kofi and Kwame expected policy makers to put the worker at the centre of industry. Technology would enhance productivity alright but the human being, no matter the position on the social ladder, should be the ultimate beneficiary.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/Gabriel Adukpo
