Immigration and immigration policy

Historical backround

France has a long tradition of immigration. Since the second half of the nineteenth century thousands of foreigners have been recruited or granted admission in an effort to compensate for the country's insufficient labor supply and low birthrate. The low birthrate has created a permanent demographic need and has together with periodic labor shortages served to motivate immigration. Immigration policy has tried to regulate the arrival, residence, and departure of foreign workers and their families, according to the interests of the moment.

The effects of immigration policy, however, have never been exactly those expected or planned for. When French governments wanted immigrants to come, as in 1919 and 1945, only a few responded; when they tried to send them home, as in 1932 and 1978–79, only a small number cooperated, and many chose to be naturalized instead. The two periods of heavy immigration, 1921–31 and 1956–72, escaped the control of political authorities almost totally. Today, illegal workers are still entering France despite firm border controls and generally increasing unemployment. “In spite of the efforts undertaken by the international organizations and by concerned governments, on a worldwide scale spontaneous migrations are rather the rule and organized migrations the exception” (Costa-Lascoux & de Wenden-Didier 1981:352).

In Table 5.1 immigration policy appears as only one of the regulating elements. Immigration reaches its peaks when employers want to augment the insufficient supply or avoid the excessive cost of domestic labor by replacing it with available and cheap foreign labor.