The Netherlands and Germany will be the top two choices as an estimated 5.5 million Polish people travel to other EU Countries in search of work over the next two years.   According to research conducted for a Dutch television program, two million Poles will be traveling to other EU members to look for work, now that Poland joined the community, effective May 1.  The Netherlands expect the biggest influx of workers from the 10 new member states to come from Poland.

*****

The Hungarian cabinet decided last week to allow Swedish citizens free access to the Hungarian labor market. Sweden is the only current EU member state that will give immigrants from new member states unconditional access to its job market and welfare benefits.  

*****

The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) acknowledged that local governments and two overseas missions, including the South Korean embassy in Japan have issued between a total of 154,191 passports with erroneous identification codes between October 2000 and July 2002.  In some cases the holders, of the passports were denied entry when traveling overseas. The BAI ordered the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry to recall all the passports and reissue new ones.

*****

Saudi Arabia banned small companies from recruiting foreign staff in a bid to create jobs for Saudis and scale down the country’s unemployed rate, since competition from foreigners made it difficult for qualified Saudis to find jobs according to labor officials.

Officials are making an effort to emphasize the need to rationalize recruitment of foreign workers to balance the labor market.