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By focusing on Roma and Travellers, the survey provides unique data and information that are not available from European general population surveys, which do not disaggregate on grounds of ethnic origin.
The findings present a bleak but familiar picture of discrimination and deprivation. We hope they encourage policymakers to step up their efforts to ensure a better future for Europe’s biggest minority group.
In this report:
FRA has also proposed a portfolio of indicators which aim to monitor objectives of the European Commission's upcoming Communication on an EU Roma Strategic Framework for Equality, Inclusion and Participation. The indicators are based on the work of the EU Roma Working Party in 2020:
This is an overview of the main findings from FRA’s 2019 Roma and Travellers Survey.
It provides the first comparable data on how Roma and Travellers experience their fundamental rights across Belgium, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
See our methodology Q&A for more information on how FRA carried out the survey.
Roma and Travellers in the six survey countries have a much lower life expectancy than the general population – on average, by 9.8 years for women and 10.2 years for men.
For women, the biggest difference is in Belgium (13.6 years) and the smallest difference is in the UK (7.1 years).
For men, the biggest difference is in Belgium (14.2 years) and the smallest difference is in France (7.9 years).
The health of almost every third (29%) Roma and Traveller limits their usual activities, compared with one in four (25%) among the general population.
Health also affects employment, especially for men: 36% said that they did not seek work because of their health.
A quarter of Roma and Traveller children (23%) live in a household that is unable to afford healthy food or heating, has trouble paying the rent or cannot afford a week’s holiday, compared to 7% of the general population. This is highest in Sweden where over half of Roma and Travellers children (51%) live in households that struggle financially.
The situation varies based on the country and type of housing. For example, every third Traveller in Belgium (32%) and 14% of Travellers in France and 16% in the UK do not have tap water in their mobile homes.
More than 90% of Travellers in Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands feel that there are not enough places – especially appropriate halting sites – for them to live. Moreover, 4% say that they were evicted at least once in the past five years.
Many report problems in their neighbourhood. About half of the Roma in the Netherlands (51%) and Roma and Traveller households in Sweden (51%) mention crime, violence and vandalism in their neighbourhoods.
Discrimination is also an issue when looking for housing. Almost half of the respondents felt discriminated against when looking for housing in the past five years.
The younger generation is also more likely to attend school or not drop out of primary education, except in the United Kingdom.
The most common reasons for not continuing in education is the need to work (25%), marriage, pregnancy, childbirth or relocation during the year (all 14%).
Every second (51%) parent of compulsory schooling age child in Sweden speaks of harassment. In France, it is 18% of parents.
Almost every third Roma or Traveller (30%) felt discriminated against when in contact with the school (as parent or student) in the five years preceding the survey.
Fewer women tend to have jobs. The gender gap is high, except in Ireland. It ranges from 10 percentage points in Sweden to 52 percentage points in the UK.
The employment situation is particularly difficult for the young. Every second Roma and Traveller aged 16–24 years is not in employment, education or training. This applies particularly to young women (58%) rather than young men (36%).
Discrimination is a common reason for not looking for work. 26% of Roma and Traveller men and 11% of women think they will not get a job because of their background. Every fourth felt discriminated against when looking for work in the past year.
Roma in the Netherlands (76%) and Travellers in Ireland (65%) felt most discriminated against because of their background. In contrast, 21% of Roma and 19% of Caravan Dwellers felt discriminated against in Belgium.
Antigypsyism is also deeply rooted. FRA’s Fundamental Rights Survey shows that almost half of the general population in the EU (45%) feel (totally) uncomfortable with having Roma or Travellers as neighbours. Among the countries surveyed, this is highest in France (52%) and lowest in Sweden (30%).
Hate motivated harassment is highest in the Netherlands where 83% of Roma say they experienced harassment because of their ethnic background.
Roma in the Netherlands, and Roma and Travellers in Sweden have the highest rates of non-reporting from all surveyed groups, with almost all physical attacks unreported.
One in 10 respondents (11%) say they were stopped by the police in the past year because of being a Roma or Traveller. Police officers physically assaulted some 4% of Roma and Travellers in the past five years because of their background.
Trust in the police is highest among Roma respondents in Belgium, followed by Roma and Travellers in Sweden. It is the lowest among respondents in the Netherlands.
When it comes to trusting the legal system, the results are similar. It is higher for Roma in Belgium, and Roma and Travellers in Sweden, and lower among Roma in the Netherlands.
Reporting discrimination is also very low. Over the past five years only one in five incidents (21%) was reported anywhere, and of those only 5% to an equality body.
Roma and Travellers in Europe have been experiencing discrimination, persecution and exclusion for centuries. Today, many still do not enjoy their basic human rights.
The EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) previously surveyed Roma discrimination in 2011 and 2016 in selected countries.
The European Commission asked for this survey to fill in data gaps. It provides evidence on Roma and Travellers’ experiences of fundamental rights in countries not covered previously - Belgium, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
The findings provide data on core indicators used to monitor the implementation of the EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies up to 2020. They will also help shape new indicators for post-2020 EU initiatives on Roma equality and inclusion.
The results will help policymakers formulate responses at EU and national levels, and monitor their implementation. They will also feed into the new EU Roma Strategic Framework for Equality, Inclusion and Participation, to be released later in 2020.
This is a brief overview of how FRA carried out its Roma and Travellers Survey. More details are available in the Technical Report.
It is the first comparable data on Roma and Travellers’ experiences of fundamental rights across these survey countries.
See our main findings Q&A for more information on the survey results.
"You get followed around all the time, especially in shops (self-serve checkouts particularly). It is difficult to get work, I couldn’t even get work in a charity shop as a volunteer. A wedding got cancelled once because they found out that the attendants were travellers. Sometimes when we go to restaurants they tell us there is a two-hour wait and only when we refuse to leave do they ‘find’ us a table."
"It would be good if there was a drop-in centre for Travellers and maybe somewhere run by Travellers for Travellers so that we would feel safe when reporting incidents."
"We do not report discrimination against us as nothing ever gets done and the police do not treat us with respect."
“I have been discriminated against three times in Sweden, at a petrol station, twice at camping sites. I was called a Gypsy at the petrol station and driven out. Since I had a witness I was able to receive damage payments. I have also been denied a place at campsites because of my clothes.”
“I am a young 16-year-old girl just about to finish sixth year of secondary school and I am really worried that I will not get a chance in life because I am a Traveller.”
“I would like more education opportunities for our children to be educated at home from the age of 11 [...] this would allow them to have better chances of gaining professional qualifications in the future, but we are left with nothing.”
“My 13-year-old son never dared to tell at school that he was a caravan resident, as a precaution against being treated badly. In fact, we cannot express our identity freely and have to hide, this is not normal.”
“I changed jobs about six months ago because in my previous job I was judged for living in a trailer.This was a job at the court as a legal administrative assistant, for which I have studied for a long time.It should not matter what my home address is if I have done the right training and am suitable for the work I do.I feel that, if they had known my address before I was hired and proved my competences, they would not have hired me in the first place.”
“The living conditions that me and my baby are forced to live in are totally unacceptable in this day and age. We live in wet and damp conditions which are very unhealthy for both myself and my baby.”
“The dampness is my children’s rooms is not healthy for my boys, who suffer from asthma.”
“Our area is located near an asbestos depot, we are forced to move every two or three months because there is no room in the camps.”
“I now live in a house where I can hardly afford the rent, we were forced to leave the caravan camp, the land was sold, the municipality gave us a relocation premium which was spent on furnishing the rental home. I’m still saving old iron and metals to try to make ends meet and pay other bills. I am also helped by others to eat. I want to leave, if I can buy a caravan suitable for traveling, I want to get immediately away. There must be camps where caravans can stand again. Round trips must be possible again without problems. If I had the money to purchase good travel facilities, I would be gone, and sell my furniture immediately.”
“I wanted to buy a condominium but the association did not approve it because of Romani surnames. I had to change to a Swedish surname.”
“My freedom to live as I want is not respected by local authorities or the government. Nothing is being done for travelling people who want to continue to live a traditional life on a halting site or a traveller specific group housing scheme. Travellers don’t want to mix with other Travellers on sites or in housing. Families want to remain on sites or in group schemes where it is only one extended family.”
“The municipality parks us in front of a wastewater facility. We are isolated from the city.”