Announcement of the Migrant Workers’ Monument - 2 February 2026

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On Monday, 2 February 2026, Studio Batman and the City of Amsterdam will announce the creation of a monument in Amsterdam dedicated to migrant workers.* The announcement will take place at the Mayor’s Official Residence at 3:30 p.m. At the same time, the participatory support study Place of Remembrance will be presented, exploring the need for, significance, form, and location of the monument.

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The monument follows from the motion Recognition of the Role of Migrant Workers in Amsterdam, submitted by council members Suleyman Koyuncu (DENK), Anissa Bouhassani (PvdA), and Yasmine Bentoumya (GroenLinks), and adopted by the Amsterdam City Council in May 2024. On 8 December 2025, the support study was approved by the Municipal Executive of Amsterdam.

Commissioned by the City of Amsterdam, Studio Batman conducted an exploratory and participatory study into the desirability and significance of a monument honouring ‘guest workers’. The research team at Studio Batman consists of young historians and makers Emin Batman, Marlies van Opheusden, Ole Lechner, and Merel Moes.

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The study focuses on communities that migrated to the Netherlands for work from the 1950s onwards, with particular attention to their descendants. Through eight participatory sessions, two city-wide dialogues, and nine pop-up conversations, the team engaged with 85 participants.

The research shows broad support within the community for a monument. Most participants see it as an important form of recognition and remembrance, particularly in light of concerns that this history is disappearing from the collective consciousness. According to respondents, a monument can contribute to education, intergenerational knowledge transfer, and social recognition of the role migrant workers played in the reconstruction and the economic, social, and cultural development of Amsterdam.

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The opinions, ideas, and memories of former migrant workers and their descendants form the foundation of the monument. From 2 February 2026 onwards, the full report of the support study will be available through the websites of the City of Amsterdam and Studio Batman.

Studio Batman emphasises that a monument can provide an important starting point for conversations about the history of labour migration. The research shows, for example, that there is ongoing debate around the term ‘guest worker’, which some participants consider inaccurate or hurtful. In addition to a monument, there is also a need for complementary public programming, support for organisations connected to the history of migrant workers, active community involvement, and co-creation.

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The monument should be the starting point for an active culture of remembrance surrounding migrant labour, not the endpoint.

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*At the time, labour migrants were referred to as ‘guest workers’, based on the expectation that they would stay temporarily to work and then return to their countries of origin. In practice, a large proportion of them settled here permanently.