MIGRANT WORKERS, EXPATRIATE ASSIGNMENTS & OVERSEAS EXPERIENCES

Human capital is the most valuable capital an organization can have. The number of migrant workers has increased during history. These workers move from poor less developed countries to developed nations and thus labor-sending countries are not in a strong position to defend their citizens from mechanisms, standards, and conditions.

 Retrieved from: http://www.weareca.org/index.php/es/era/1960s-Present/salvadorans_2.html

Expatriate Assignments and Overseas Experiences are social phenomenon that can change or strongly influence the individual's career and the companies' performance.

Expatriate assignment: a company that operates internationally has a position available in a subsidiary abroad and the company asks its employee to go for a while. A human resource management issue. Companies select the area, prepare the expatriate workers, give them support overseas and plan their future repatriation.

Initiative: comes from the company.

Overseas experience: the person saves money, resigns from work and goes abroad to have new experiences and met different languages and cultures. People develop many valuable skills such as flexibility, a broader perspective and a critic thought

Initiative: comes from the individual.

The following video is an example of overseas experiences:

Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vqKihGp3S0

Both EA and OE, build different competences in individuals, companies and nations

In order to have a succesful experience and adaptation, a person must be able to put aside their emotional responses and try to observe the situation with an open mind and a willingness to try to understand the other country´s culture. 

Explain how easy is it for Colombian companies to employ expatriates locally? Give examples

As it is exposed in this document, migrant workers pass from developing countries to developed ones. I believed this can influence a company when choosing where to expatriate. If a company has a subsidiary here, they will prefer to hire local workers because is going to be less expensive than beginning the process of expatriate with foreigners. Here in Colombia is not that common, to have foreigners working inside the country but through history it has increased. For example, in the automobile sector, is common to have a CEO from where the company comes.

As a developing country, I think we have more expatriates working in the country in the sector of humanitarian help and Yasuko (aid worker of JICA here in Medellin) is an example of that.

On the other hand, religious workers travel the world with expatriate assignments. For example the Opus Dei expatriate their workers all over the world. Here in Colombia we have groups of foreigners working for this organization.

REFERENCES

1. Gamburd, Michele R. 2009. ADVOCATING FOR SRI LANKAN MIGRANT WORKERS. Critical Asian Studies 41, no. 1:61-8
2. Inkson, kerr et at. 1999 “Expatriate assignment versus overseas experience: contrasting models of internationl human resource development” . Journal of World Business. 34:351-368
3. Available online: http://www.opusdei.org.co/
4. Image retrieved from: http://www.weareca.org/index.php/es/era/1960s-Present/salvadorans_2.html
5. Video retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vqKihGp3S0