Mobility and Welfare Responses in Times of COVID-19

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic brought to the forefront an unpreceded challenge to the norms of mobility and social protection in all world regions. While different travel restrictions -in light of the pandemic- have posed a temporary halt to mobility, the coronavirus outbreak has placed an overwhelming strain on the welfare states of all countries. The different social protection policies, offered by the home and host countries, have become a vital part of the coronavirus management, from healthcare and unemployment schemes, to family benefits and guaranteed minimum income schemes. Nevertheless, the distribution of and access to social protection measures during the pandemic has been unequal, leaving the most vulnerable part of the population unprotected. Due to their legal and socio-economic status, mobile individuals are facing several obstacles in accessing social protection schemes not only in their hosts countries, but also when choosing to return back in their homelands. This panel aims to examine from a comparative perspective the different approaches on the migration-welfare nexus of states and migrants alike in these critical times of multiple crises.

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