OSLO (Reuters) -- Norway may open its doors to workers from Romania and Bulgaria after benefiting from an influx of east Europeans from post-communist states in past years, a senior government official said.

By some estimates more than 100,000 east Europeans, mostly from Poland, have joined Norway's 2.4-million-strong labor market since eight post-communist states became European Union members in mid-2004.

And once Romania and Bulgaria join the EU at the start of 2007, their workers will probably enjoy the same benefits as other migrants, including protection from unfairly low wages or below standard working conditions in areas such as the construction industry.