Integration is often viewed as a matter of language learning, education, or cultural adaptation. In reality, its impact can be much deeper. Interactions with local people help newcomers understand how Estonian society works in practice, what kind of behaviour is considered normal in the workplace, where to find reliable information, and when something should raise a red flag.
Integration cannot, therefore, be a one-sided endeavour. Learning the Estonian language, going to work, and trying to make contact with the locals is not enough for someone who has arrived in Estonia. The local community must also be willing to welcome them. In the Integration Foundation’s experience, there have been families who have ultimately left Estonia precisely because they were unable to build connections with the local community or develop a sense of being welcome and accepted here.
Every country has its own identity and culture, as well as its own rules and social norms. For someone who has just arrived in Estonia, it may not be obvious which organisation to contact for help with a particular issue. It may seem obvious to us that we can find the service we need online, submit an application via an online portal, and check official information on government websites. However, for someone arriving from a different environment, it may not be quite so straightforward.
Limited digital skills are more than just inconvenience. This may mean that a person is unable to access the services intended for them, cannot find reliable information, or becomes an easier target for those who seek to exploit their lack of knowledge for personal gain. The situation becomes particularly difficult when a person has no one in Estonia to help them find their way around the system. Estonia’s digital state makes many things very easy for people who know how to use it. For those who lack the necessary skills, however, the same system may become yet another barrier between them and the support they need, and ultimately between them and the community.
Local connections can therefore mean much more than just friendship or a sense of belonging. It can be someone you can ask: is what is happening to me normal in Estonia? Is this sort of employment contract normal? Can my employer require me to do this? Who should I contact?
Migrant workers are particularly vulnerable to workplace exploitation
There are many cases where people who have come to Estonia for work discover that their employer is not paying them the promised wages. They may also be unsure about the conditions of their stay in Estonia, whether their employer can affect their right to stay in the country, or who to turn to for help. As a result, they may end up contacting an authority whose role is not actually to handle employment disputes.
People do not leave their old habits behind at the border. They come from a different work culture, legal environment, and society, and their understanding of what constitutes a normal relationship between an employee, an employer, and the state may differ significantly from that in Estonia. It is even less likely that they will immediately place their trust in the authorities. If a person comes from a country where their experiences with public officials have tended to be negative, or where work-related issues are primarily resolved through personal contacts, these experiences do not simply disappear upon arrival in Estonia. Consequently, such confusing situations often lead to exploitation in the workplace. If a person relies mainly on a small community where everyone has limited knowledge of Estonia’s legal system and public services, misconceptions can quickly take root. In the worst-case scenario, a person may come to accept as normal a situation they should not have to endure.
It is therefore extremely important, in order to prevent such situations, to communicate with newly arrived immigrants in a clear and practical way about employees’ rights and obligations in Estonia, and what employers entitled to require of their employees and what they are not. This information is also provided through the adaptation training offered as part of the national adaptation programme Settle in Estonia, organised by the Integration Foundation. The training is intended for all individuals who have been living in Estonia for less than five years on the basis of a residence permit or right of residence. Preventing the exploitation of migrant workers cannot begin only when a person turns to an official, a labour dispute committee, or victim support services with their problem. By that point, considerable damage may already have been done.
That is why it is not enough for the necessary information to simply be available somewhere on a website. From the moment they come to Estonia to work, people need clear, practical information about their rights, what their employer is and is not allowed to do, and where to turn for help with different problems. It is equally important that this information reaches them through the channels and in ways they actually use and trust.
Prevention starts with ensuring that people who have arrived in Estonia can distinguish reliable information from rumours, know where to turn to with a problem, and are able to use Estonia’s digital services. It also depends on whether they have people here they can turn to for help and advice. The primary responsibility lies with responsible employers, but it is also a responsibility we all share as people who live in Estonia and interact with immigrants.
It is not possible to fully understand how a society works simply by reading a handbook or an Estonian language textbook. This understanding develops through our day-to-day interactions with other people. The more contact a newly arrived immigrant has with local people, the more opportunities they have to obtain relevant and necessary information and understand their rights and opportunities in Estonian society through reliable sources.
Everyone can help, because simply having the right information available is not enough on its own. It must reach people in a way that they can understand and trust. Otherwise, even the most comprehensive official guidance may be overshadowed by a much simpler but more convincing argument: ‘But a friend of mine said otherwise.’
An article by Kristina Avdonina, Head of Adaptation at the Integration Foundation, was published in Õhtuleht.
The Settle in Estonia Programme is a free educational programme provided by the Estonian state which is intended to help the foreigners who have arrived in Estonia to adapt and become accustomed to local life more easily. We offer courses for people who have come to live or study in Estonia and have lived here for less than 5 years. For example, war refugees to whom Estonia offers international or temporary protection, as well as people who have come to Estonia to work or do business here or relocate with their family member. The adaptation program The Settle in Estonia Programme is free for participants. We offer language training and other courses to help you cope with everyday life in Estonia. Read more and register: https://integratsioon.ee/en/kohanemine. The adaptation programme is co-funded by the European Union and the state budget.