The Migration Crisis in Modern Europe

The aim of the presentation was to analyze contemporary migration flows to Poland caused by the military conflict in Ukraine and to examine the hypothesis of the transformation of this state, once a country of origin, into a destination for migrants. The most visible consequences of the "special military operation in Ukraine" are observed in the social sphere. According to official statistics, more than 3 million people have already crossed the Polish-Ukrainian border. Nevertheless, it is estimated that 20-30% of them have already managed to disappear into the expanses of Europe. Ukrainian refugees, due to their gender and age composition, are a special group, which is extremely difficult to integrate into the Polish labor market. People of advanced age are often no longer able to work for hire, and many women have to care for their young children. Only a few of them will be able to work or combine childcare responsibilities with work. However, even Ukrainian women without children may have problems integrating into Polish society, especially in the labor market, due to psychological trauma, poor knowledge of the Polish language, or formal barriers, such as the lack of recognition of their diploma in Poland, which would prevent them from working in their profession. A separate issue is the confrontation of Ukrainian refugees with the realities of the Polish labor market, expressed in the threat of discrimination and precarization in the workplace.The experience of previous migration waves in Europe suggests that most of the displaced Ukrainians will want to stay in Poland. This will have serious consequences for Warsaw, both for its domestic policy and for its foreign policy.The impact of the Ukrainian crisis on Poland and the phenomenon of "Ukrainianization of Poland" require special attention from the academic community