Greek Trade Unions and Employers' Associations in Immigration Policy-making within the Context of EU Membership

Abstract

Most often than not, the impact of EU membership on Greek policies and politics is simply treated as “self-evident” or it is sought in the formal adoption of legal norms and institutions. What about the actors? How do they perceive, understand, and even instrumentalise the EU “from within” the policy-making processes? The policy issues concerning foreign immigrants in Greece can provide a magnifying lens to observe different actors at work and their positions and strategies as regards to the role of the EU. In this lecture, the focus will not be on the “usual suspects” (such as the Greek political parties or the government) but on smaller and under-researched - yet important- players: the public administration, non-governmental organisations, workers' and employers' associations, and the Greek Ombudsman.