This report analyzes the complicated and multifaceted phenomenon of labor migration in the former Soviet Union. It looks at the migration strategies of individual countries and their failure to implement their international obligations, the discrepancy between pronouncements about freedom of movement and employment made by intergovernmental unions and the restrictive approach to labor migration taken in reality, weak legal guarantees in the sphere of labor migration, and gross human rights violations in the daily life of migrants.

ADC Memorial would like to thank the following people and groups for their assistance gathering information for this report:

Migrant workers who shared their stories; experts and staff members of international organizations who shared their opinion on labor migration; attorneys and NGO representatives who shared their experiences protecting the rights of migrants (the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH); in Armenia – the Civil Society Institute and the International Center for Human Development; in Georgia – the IDP Women Association Consent, the Human Rights Center (HRIDC), and Multinational Georgia; in Moldova – PromoLex; in Belarus – La Strada and the Her Rights Center; in Ukraine – the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group; in Kyrgyzstan – Kylym Shamy and Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan; in Kazakhstan – Sana Sezim and the International Legal Initiative; and representatives of migration structures who agreed to share information with ADC Memorial experts.

Download the report “The Rights of Migrant Workers from Former Soviet Countries: Real-Life Challenges and Unfulfilled Obligations”