“Migratory birds: Cross-border commuting and migrant workers in West Hungary” by Ferenc Janko
The region of West Hungary, especially the city of Sopron has experienced large migrant worker inflows from rural Hungary and neighbouring countries into low‐skilled jobs in pre‐COVID‐19 years. This development brought significant change to a region already defined by cross-border commuting and employment in Austria. After a regional overview, the paper draws on questionnaire surveys and interviews around Sopron with migrant workers, labour market intermediaries, employers, and hosts to explore the landscape of commuting and the workings of the migrant workers' labour market that resulted dehumanization narratives in the social relations of migrant recruitment, training, employment, and accommodation.
Ferenc Jankó is Associate Professor at the Department of Social and Economic geography at Eötvös Loránd University (Budapest).