British Firms Relying Increasingly On Migrants

Skilled migrant workers are being welcomed more by businesses in the UK

British firms have been filling up job vacancies with migrants as there is a dearth of skilled British workers. A poll conducted by the CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) showed that many businesses considered it rational to hire foreign labor.

Many businesses admitted they hired foreign labor as they had lower expectations about pay and could work under any condition. And hiring them seems to have worked well as the businesses thrived.

Peter Cheese, CIPD chief executive, said: "Employers have been turning to EU migrants to fill vacancies, particularly for lower skilled jobs, often because they are a bit older and have more work experience than young people in the UK, emphasising the competitive nature of the market for entry level jobs.

He also remarked “Employers are making rational decisions to employ more experienced and qualified workers from overseas over less experienced UK workers, or are hiring migrants because there are simply not enough applicants in the local labour market.”

He admitted it was a “highly charged political issue” but added: “Our research shows that many of the negative assumptions about immigration are untrue.”

Businesses are skeptical in employing home-based labor as they are demanding, less skilled and less suitable than migrant workers 

Though there are mixed reactions to employing migrant labour, around 26% expressed in the poll that there was difficulty attracting skilled or semi-skilled UK candidates for jobs.  Mr Cheese also expressed in the report that educational institutions and politicians/decision makers should look at improving the skills of young people passing out from these institutions, so that they are in a better position to compete globally in the labour market. The global labour market is a realistic option of modern life and British workers have to thrive in this market facing the competition.

Mr Cheese added, “This highlights a particular need for even greater efforts to close the gap between education and work by government, business and employee representatives, to provide better guidance and support to young people, and help create a more level playing field by improving their employability skills and therefore employment prospects, especially the low-skilled and unskilled.”

This is an ongoing issue that the British Govt. has been facing and the need to address it is gaining momentum.

News Source: International Employment Today, The Telegraph, Times of India

Image source: HR Review, Workers-direct.com