BEYOND REMITTANCES: ASSESSING THE WELLBEING IMPACTS OF TEMPORARY INTERNATIONAL LABOUR MIGRATION ON TIMORESE WORKERS

Udoy Saikia, Flinders University
Susanne Schech, Professor
Melinda Dodd, Research Scholar
Iriana Freitas De Jesus Ximenes, PhD candidate

The impacts of temporary international labour migration on migrant workers and their households have gathered significant attention, especially in countries like Timor-Leste, where such migration is a vital socio-economic strategy. This paper presents findings from a comparative evaluation of two prominent labour migration schemes—the Australian Seasonal Workers Programme (SWP) and the South Korean Employment Permit System (EPS)—analysing their multidimensional impacts on the wellbeing of Timorese workers and their families. The study uses data collected from a fieldwork conducted in two phases. The first phase (survey) was conducted in November-December 2022 among workers returned to Timor-Leste and among workers currently working in Australia. The second phase in April 2023. The methodology adapts a Wellbeing analytical framework that this project team developed for the National Human Development Report of Timor-Leste 2018. The goal is to capture wellbeing outcomes in a holistic, multidimensional way. This paper highlights the critical finding on the marked decline in wellbeing post-return, with economic and health wellbeing dropping drastically compared to workers still employed overseas. This paper argues that while temporary labour migration schemes provide important economic benefits, more robust and multidimensional reintegration strategies are needed to ensure the long-term wellbeing of migrant workers of Timor-Leste.

Keywords: International Migration, Economic Demography, Migrant Populations and Refugees, Population Policies

See extended abstract.