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The recession and international migrationThe overall EU-wide fluctuation in unemployment is relatively small, but what aboutthe countries that have been hardest hit by the recession? Figure 1 shows the relationshipbetween the unemployment rate and gross immigration in Ireland and Spain. ForIreland, the steep rise after 2004 was mainly due to immigration from the A8 accessioncountries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, andSlovenia). The classic relationship between unemployment and immigration is clearlyvisible in the recession, however, and it would be even stronger for net immigration, asout-migration from both countries doubled between 2007 and 2009 (Papademetriou etal. 2010)Figure 1. Gross immigration per thousand and unemployment percentage25.0Ireland25.0Spain20.020.015.015.010.010.05.05.00.00.02000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020002001200220032004200520062007200820092010I RateU RateI RateU rateSource: OECD StatExtracts at: http://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspxThus, the responsiveness of immigration to the business cycle has remained at aboutits historical level, despite the fact that policy is much more restrictive than it was (atleast for the Atlantic economy) in the 19th century. On the other hand, transport costsare lower and there are many channels of entry such as temporary worker schemes andillegal immigration. Even the numbers of family reunification migrants and asylumseekers are influenced by economic conditions.145