Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon

Whilst a few scholars have examined the situation of domestic workers, the issue of migrant labor as a whole (its contribution to the labor market, the status and situation of different categories of workers, and their impact on the resilience of the Lebanese social structure), is largely ignored, w...

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Main Author: Tabar, Paul (author)
Other Authors: Longuenesse, Elisabeth (author)
Format: article
Published: 2014
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10725/8220
http://libraries.lau.edu.lb/research/laur/terms-of-use/articles.php
https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01305367/
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author Tabar, Paul
author2 Longuenesse, Elisabeth
author2_role author
author_facet Tabar, Paul
Longuenesse, Elisabeth
author_role author
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Tabar, Paul
Longuenesse, Elisabeth
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2014
2018-07-27T09:33:57Z
2018-07-27T09:33:57Z
2018-07-27
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/10725/8220
Longuenesse, E., & Tabar, P. (2014). Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon.
http://libraries.lau.edu.lb/research/laur/terms-of-use/articles.php
https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01305367/
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv en
dc.rights.*.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
class, race, nationality and gender
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv Article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
info:eu-repo/semantics/article
description Whilst a few scholars have examined the situation of domestic workers, the issue of migrant labor as a whole (its contribution to the labor market, the status and situation of different categories of workers, and their impact on the resilience of the Lebanese social structure), is largely ignored, whereas the high proportion of foreign workers in Lebanon results in an increasing fragmentation of the working class, and the embeddedness of the Lebanese class structure in globalization. After examining the legal framework that organizes non-Lebanese workers in Lebanon, this paper discusses the findings of a field research on the labor force in the cleaning and the industrial sectors, by focusing on two case studies. Our research question addresses the social impact of the imbalance in the labor market between Lebanese and non-Lebanese workers, and the impact that such diversity (of both nationalities and class status) has on labor relations and the structure of the working class. Eventually, we argue that specific conditions of employment, characterised by the role of labor importing agencies, the so-called sponsorship system, outsourcing, the casualization of work and the ethnic fragmentation of the labor market, result in the segmentation of the labor force along national as well as gender lines. The strategy of many large employers in Lebanon appears to be based on the simultaneous and tactical application of inclusionary and exclusionary processes; i.e. the inclusion of migrant workers into the labor market whilst continuing to exclude them from available benefits as laid out in the Lebanese labor law.
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
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id LAURepo_51da7faf8e7c2d8fce81154f8a0dc168
identifier_str_mv Longuenesse, E., & Tabar, P. (2014). Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon.
language_invalid_str_mv en
network_acronym_str LAURepo
network_name_str Lebanese American University repository
oai_identifier_str oai:laur.lau.edu.lb:10725/8220
publishDate 2014
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spelling Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanonclass, race, nationality and genderTabar, PaulLonguenesse, ElisabethWhilst a few scholars have examined the situation of domestic workers, the issue of migrant labor as a whole (its contribution to the labor market, the status and situation of different categories of workers, and their impact on the resilience of the Lebanese social structure), is largely ignored, whereas the high proportion of foreign workers in Lebanon results in an increasing fragmentation of the working class, and the embeddedness of the Lebanese class structure in globalization. After examining the legal framework that organizes non-Lebanese workers in Lebanon, this paper discusses the findings of a field research on the labor force in the cleaning and the industrial sectors, by focusing on two case studies. Our research question addresses the social impact of the imbalance in the labor market between Lebanese and non-Lebanese workers, and the impact that such diversity (of both nationalities and class status) has on labor relations and the structure of the working class. Eventually, we argue that specific conditions of employment, characterised by the role of labor importing agencies, the so-called sponsorship system, outsourcing, the casualization of work and the ethnic fragmentation of the labor market, result in the segmentation of the labor force along national as well as gender lines. The strategy of many large employers in Lebanon appears to be based on the simultaneous and tactical application of inclusionary and exclusionary processes; i.e. the inclusion of migrant workers into the labor market whilst continuing to exclude them from available benefits as laid out in the Lebanese labor law.PublishedN/A2018-07-27T09:33:57Z2018-07-27T09:33:57Z20142018-07-27Articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/articlehttp://hdl.handle.net/10725/8220Longuenesse, E., & Tabar, P. (2014). Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon.http://libraries.lau.edu.lb/research/laur/terms-of-use/articles.phphttps://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01305367/eninfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:laur.lau.edu.lb:10725/82202021-03-19T10:43:16Z
spellingShingle Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
Tabar, Paul
status_str publishedVersion
title Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
title_full Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
title_fullStr Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
title_full_unstemmed Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
title_short Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
title_sort Migrant workers and class structure in Lebanon
url http://hdl.handle.net/10725/8220
http://libraries.lau.edu.lb/research/laur/terms-of-use/articles.php
https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01305367/