The Governance of Labour Migration and Housing: Addressing Tensions in Labour Protection

The governance of labour migration continues to be a complex terrain. This chapter analyses the role of the ILO and its mandate to protect migrant workers amid the tensions generated between delivering on social justice and the consolidation of temporary forms of labour migration as a feature of globalisation. Considering the case of housing, it examines how fragmentation in policymaking restricts the realisation of the right to adequate accommodation for migrant workers under temporary programmes. Accommodation for migrant workers is a key dimension of social policy that only received renewed attention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, it has been a preoccupation of the ILO since its inception as a dimension of workers’ living conditions. While contested, ILO action took the form of an international standard under Recommendation No. 115 on Workers’ Housing, in addition to being included as a theme in other international instruments. The housing needs of individuals are influenced by where they work and the nature of their jobs. Similarly, the cost of living and location impact the labour supply and the wages that people can demand. However, these connections are less apparent in the case of transnational temporary migrants, whose agency is restricted. The chapter explores these issues to show that integrating workplace–residence practices with (im)migration regimes through housing is necessary to close labour protection gaps in regulation.