Why rich countries are so dependent on migrant workers
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Why rich countries are so dependent on migrant workers

The world's 169 million international migrant workers comprise almost 5% of the global workforce, and they're integral to wealthy countries' economies.
08:56
Thu, Oct 14 20218:36 PM EDT

Economic globalization has created more migrant workers than ever before. According to the United Nations, 1 in 20 workers worldwide is a migrant worker.

Migrant workers are people who live and work in a country where they don't hold citizenship. Globally, 67.4% of migrant workers — or 114 million people — live in wealthy countries.

There's no universally accepted statistical definition for labor migration, but the workers are usually categorized by the industries they work in. And their problems vary according to the jobs they do.  

"You have varying degrees of exclusion, injustice when it comes to the issues of basic pay, working conditions, living conditions, recourse to basic labor rights and advice," says CNBC's Sri Jegarajah.

The vulnerability of migrant workers was highlighted by the pandemic, as borders were closed and mobility was heavily restricted. 

Despite the challenges, migrant workers provide great economic benefits not only to their host country, but back home as well.

Watch the video above to learn more about the migrant workforce.