Europe Needs Workers, Yet Migrants Remain a Source of Dispute
The European Union is grappling with an increasingly difficult contradiction. On the one hand, the economies of several member states need foreign workers to fill shortages in healthcare, construction, technology and services. On the other, European leaders are embroiled in disputes over migration policy, including Spain’s plan to grant legal status to hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants.
The disagreement resurfaced at the European Council summit in Brussels, Belgium, on Thursday and Friday, 15–16 October 2026. Debate over migration dragged on, prolonging discussions among the leaders of member states and highlighting the political sensitivity of population movement in Europe.
Euronews reported on Friday (16 October 2026) that Denmark, Italy and Poland had pushed to amend the summit conclusions, calling on member states to avoid policies they believe could encourage undocumented migration. The pressure was indirectly aimed at the Spanish government’s plan to grant legal status to around 600,000 migrants.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen even asked the European Commission to examine the impact of Spain’s policy on other member states. She questioned Madrid’s move, which she considers contrary to the trend among several European governments towards tighter migration controls.
“I have asked the European Commission to examine what happens when a country does something that is almost completely the opposite of what all the other countries are doing,” Frederiksen said, as quoted by Euronews.
The dispute has put Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez at odds with several European leaders. Spain’s government is defending an approach that offers legalisation to migrants already in the country, while other states are concerned about the consequences for border controls and migrant movements within the Schengen area.
But Europe’s migration debate is not only about who may enter and stay. Amid the political tensions, EU institutions are acknowledging that workers from outside the bloc are increasingly needed to maintain economic competitiveness.
Europe needs foreign workers
In an official publication on 15 June 2026, the European Commission said demographic change was causing labour shortages in several economic sectors. An ageing population and changes in the structure of the workforce mean European countries increasingly need workers from outside the EU.
The Commission said legal migration was an important instrument for meeting labour needs. The EU is therefore seeking to improve the recruitment of foreign workers by simplifying residence and work permits and developing an international job-matching system.
One initiative is the EU Talent Pool, a platform designed to connect employers in the EU with jobseekers from non-member countries. The policy shows that the need for foreign workers is recognised even as controlling undocumented migration becomes a more prominent political priority.
The issue is reflected in data from Eurostat, the EU’s official statistics office. In the first quarter of 2026, the job vacancy rate was 2.1 per cent across the EU and 2.3 per cent in the euro area.
The job vacancy rate compares the number of unfilled posts with the total number of jobs, both occupied and vacant. The figure of 2.1 per cent therefore does not mean that 2.1 per cent of Europe’s population is unemployed; it indicates the proportion of labour demand that has not been met.
Conditions vary considerably between countries. The Netherlands recorded a vacancy rate of 4.0 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, followed by Belgium at 3.4 per cent, Malta at 3.3 per cent and Austria at 3.1 per cent.
By contrast, the rate was just 0.6 per cent in Romania and 0.8 per cent in Poland. Bulgaria, Spain and Slovakia each recorded 0.9 per cent.
These differences show that labour shortages cannot be generalised across Europe. Some countries and sectors are struggling to recruit, while labour-market conditions elsewhere are different.
By economic activity, Eurostat recorded a vacancy rate of 3.0 per cent in the EU’s accommodation and food services sector. Construction stood at 2.8 per cent, while telecommunications, computer programming and information technology services reached 2.6 per cent.
The figures show that labour demand is not confined to highly skilled jobs. Services, infrastructure construction and day-to-day operations also face recruitment needs that have yet to be fully met.
Why are migrants a source of dispute?
The argument at the EU summit reflects two interests operating at the same time. Member states need workers to support economic activity, but governments are also under pressure to control undocumented migration, secure borders and ensure that asylum systems operate according to the rules.
These are not, in fact, identical issues. Legal labour migration generally takes place through work permits, skills requirements and recruitment channels, while undocumented migration concerns people who enter or remain without complying with immigration rules.
Political debate, however, often brings the two together under the broad heading of migration. As a result, the economic need for foreign workers can be overshadowed by disputes over border monitoring and the legal status of arrivals.
In a special report on 11 June 2026, Euronews highlighted this contradiction. While some governments tighten migration rules, European companies continue to need workers from outside the bloc to fill positions that are difficult to staff through domestic recruitment.
Tesseltje de Lange, an expert in migration law at Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands, said European businesses and households could not ignore their reliance on migrant workers. In her view, rhetoric about reducing migration often fails to reflect the economy’s actual needs.
“European businesses and households cannot function without migrant labour,” De Lange told Euronews.
She also pointed to the administrative hurdles faced by foreign workers. Recognition of professional qualifications can take a long time, while visa procedures and labour-market tests often slow recruitment.
The issue, therefore, is not simply whether to open or close borders. European countries must also decide how needed workers can enter through legal channels, receive legal protection and work in line with labour-market needs.