Year 10 GCSE Economics Globalisation / Migration and the UK economy

Key terms Globalisation – increased trade between different countries Migration – people moving jobs from one country/region to another Mobility of labour – how able workers are to change jobs Immigration – going to work in another country Emigration – leaving own country to work in another

Benefits of globalisation for the UK labour market Job creation Lower labour costs and consequent unit costs Leads to lower selling price Increased competitiveness Fills gaps in skills-shortage areas Can lead to increased exports

Drawbacks of globalisation for the UK labour market Low-skilled jobs are lost Affects certain regions of the UK; eg manufacturing Can lead to lower wages for workers on more widespread scale Unemployment Social problems; resentment from British workers

Migration

Increases strain on social services New knowledge and skills Depresses wages Increases diversity of country Helps fill vacancies for low-skilled jobs Fills skills gaps in the labour market Displaces low- skilled UK workers Reduces wage inflation Increases number of consumers Increases competitive- ness Valuable skills are lost Helps battle UK’s aging population Possible language barriers Reduces unemploy- ment in recessions Increases number of produces Possible entrepreneur- ship as young ‘imports’ of labour Which are the POSITIVES of Immigration or Emigration Values Next