Labor market and migration across the Eurasian continent. 6th Workshop Report.

The 6th workshop of the IIASA joint research project “Challenges and Opportunities of Economic Integration within a wider European and Eurasian Space” held on April 13 – 14, 2016 in Laxenburg, Austria, discussed the impacts of migration flows on the sustainable development of the Eurasian region, the labor market challenges, and the potential for harmonization of education systems between the European Union (EU) and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). In particular the workshop analyzed the possible scenarios of cross-border migration (both labor migration and refugee flows), the changing structure of the labor force, as well as their economic and social implications for the labor markets and the economic growth of both the source and host countries in the EU, the EAEU and the countries in their joint neighborhood. It also considered such practical aspects as the prospects of introducing a visa-free regime between the EU and the EAEU, enhancing the mobility of pensions, fostering educational and academic exchanges, and the mutual recognition of diplomas. The workshop was attended by over 50 well-established academics and policy-makers from Europe, the United States, Turkey, Korea and the post-Soviet space. A new element of the workshop was the introduction of a high-level panel session. This session reflected on the long-term prospects of economic cooperation between the enlarged EU, the EAEU and their neighbors, including the key Asian players, such as China, Korea, and Japan, as well as the USA, focusing also on the labor market challenges and the impacts of migration flows on the sustainable development of the Greater Eurasian region. The session was chaired by Pavel Kabat and included talks by Tatyana Valovaya, Vaclav Klaus, Jeffrey D. Sachs and Peter Balas, as well as Evgeny Vinokurov, Peter Havlik and Jesus Crespo Cuaresma. Seminar Focus Areas: During the workshop the participants concentrated on three focus points: 1. The labor market and migration in the EU 2. The labor market and migration in the EAEU 3. Challenges and opportunities for a common EU-EAEU labor market