Immigration Cap negatively affecting Businesses

The Head of Employment at Speechly Bircham, Richard Martin, said that “This year’s survey findings send out a clear warning to employers. The combination of increased workplace conflict, longer hours and rising stress levels is a potent cocktail which could lead to a significant rise in tribunals and industrial action if not properly addressed. Despite our last survey showing that UK employers regarded employee engagement as their number one priority, reported levels of employee engagement have fallen. Skills shortages are worsening and the rigid cap on immigration means that employers are left with few tools with which to plug the skills gap.”

The news came just before Airbus, the leading commercial aircraft manufacturer in the world, said that it had been unable to bring in two highly specialised engineering experts required for work on a new Airbus wing due to the temporary Immigration Cap. According to a spokesperson for the company Airbus had made repeated requests to the Home Office to bring in the experts for the last two months however their pleas have been ignored by the Home Office and UK Border Agency. According to the company there are only a handful of engineers in the world capable of doing the work however their skills are not on the official Shortage Occupation List therefore any please for further Certificates of Sponsorship are likely to fall on deaf ears.

The Government recently said that it would prioritise assistance for large companies such as Airbus UK which employs 10,000 people directly and 135,000 through its supply chain. The Vice President and Head of Political Affairs for Airbus, Katherine Bennett, said that the company uses ‘home grown talent’ wherever it could and spent £3.5 million training engineers last year.

Commonwealth Contractors

Commonwealth Contractors is a collection of highly skilled professionals from the Commonwealth and beyond. We partner with OISC Registered Immigration Partners capable of professionally representing a Tier 1 Visa Application / Extension and Tier 2 Licensed Consultancy & Associated Trust Partners who may be prepared, where required, to sponsor a doctor on a Tier 2 Visa (formerly UK Work Permit). Commonwealth Contractors also provides updates on UK Immigration News.

To find out more call Commonwealth Contractors now on 0330 390 9021 or Submit your Details and we will get back to you. Please be prepared to send a copy of a recent CV so that we can pass to interested partners