What different kinds of immigration to Europe have there been since Essay

What different kinds of immigration to Europe have there been since World War II, and why - Essay Example xxx). After the end of the World War, numerous types of immigration policies were set up. The explanation for these policies were chiefly economic; however, in some cases they were also political (Parsons, Smeeding, pp. 310). However, there is no doubt that after 1945, Europe is marked as the continent that received an overall net flow (Salt, pp. 3). In addition, these migrations happened over a series of decades. Various dynamics and various states are involved. One type of immigration occurred within Europe. Western Europe consisted of the wealthier nations. These countries began employing labor from the less wealthy nations. Due to the imperative need for work force to rebuild the countries after the war, and the shortage of labor due to loss of military personnel, the European Voluntary Worker scheme was set up. The recruitment by Britain of about 200,000 male workers from refugee camps in Italy happened between the period of 1945 and 1951. The laws governing this immigration wer e quite harsh, since the regulations were quite severe. They were literally bonded labor with no rights to family reunions and their misconduct could lead to their expulsion. These people were largely known as ‘guest workers’. This system had provided the countries with the necessary labor to build the economies that were worn out by the war. However, at the beginning, as mentioned above, the guest worker system was highly strict. Eventually, the need to hold on to these workers led to the relaxation of some rules especially when it came to family reunions. This eventually led to the admittance of women as immigrants (Toro-Morn & Alicea pp.xxi). In addition, certain guest workers also came from Mediterranean countries to meet the growing demand for labor. This immigration played a prominent role in the 1950s and until the mid 1970s. Italy was the most important recipient ant of these types of guest workers (Nijkamp, pp. 66). Countries like Germany, which were devastated by the war, had to recuperate. After the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, the inflow of East German workers had stopped. Hence, there was a shortage of workers (Jennissen, pp.128). Therein, became an inflow of workers. By 1970, West Germany almost had 2.1 million foreign workers (Nijkamp, pp.66). A very prominent type of immigration that occurred in the post war era was due to the decolonization process. Many French, British, Portuguese colonies had acquired freedom after the war, because these nations could not simply afford to keep their colonies intact. This led to the influx of people in two ways. The European colonial officers and colonists all returned to Europe. Besides that, various countries notably Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal, all documented a large number of immigration from their former colonies (Nijkamp, pp.66). London Transport enlisted members directly from the New Commonwealth countries that included African countries, the In dian sub-continent, and the Caribbean. A number of people also arrived directly in search for better employment pursuits. Contrary to the strict regulations imposed upon the guest workers, around 350, 000 Irish men moved with their families in the period 1945 to 1959, and faced no such restrictions. They enjoyed full civil rights. Most of this type of migration was centered on three empires; Dutch, French and Portuguese, and these migrations had received a large amount of scholarly interest. It is because after Britain, they were one of the largest