Immigration and labour market

This essay offers a critical description of the relationships between immigration and the Italian labour market, starting from the 1970 – that is the years of the transformation from a sending to a receiving country – to the present phase. After a depiction of Italy’s specific features in the international context, the attention is focused on the reasons why the Italian labour market has attracted so many migrants, despite the high levels of local unemployment. Some considerations are then developed about the dimensions and characteristics of immigrant labour. Finally, the Author proposes some reflections about the government of labour migrations and the challenges to face.