IRRV Alert September 3 2008
News
Publicity
Consultations
Reports
New migrant worker rules outlined
A list of jobs for which there is deemed to be a shortage of skilled workers in the UK has been released.
The Migration Advisory Committee was asked by ministers to say which type of jobs had shortages and should be open to workers from outside the EU.
Its draft list includes skilled nurses and consultants, some engineering jobs, maths and English teachers but not care workers or nuclear energy workers.
Ministers say they will publish the final list next month.
Home Office minister Tony McNulty said the MAC's list "seems broadly right" but he wanted to study it in more detail and test its findings.
The list will be part of the government's "points-based migration" system aimed at better tailoring non-EU immigration to the needs of business.
MAC chairman, Professor David Metcalf, said that an employer would have to clear three hurdles to be able to hire somebody from outside Europe.
"Firstly the job has got to be skilled, secondly there has got to be a shortage, and thirdly and perhaps most importantly, it has to be sensible to bring a person in - there we are looking at the tension between the short-run fix of bringing immigrants in and the long-run need to upskill the economy," he said.
The changes, which involved looking at 12 different indicators, will result in a more skilled labour supply, he added.
 |
FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME
 |
According to the list, maths and science teachers are still needed, but secondary school teachers in other subjects, allowed in under the current system, will face restrictions.
Midwives, social workers and IT technicians from outside the EU are all no longer needed, according to the list.
Only care workers earning at least £8.80 an hour will be allowed to come to Britain from later this year - a salary level most care-home owners will not be able to pay.
"It is so far above what the medium pay levels are within care homes for senior care workers, it is just not going to be achievable," said Mandy Thorn, a board member of the National Care Association.
If migrants can prove their worth and earn an honest living, there should be no problem
She said the sector had tried to recruit from the UK and Europe but had not been able to attract sufficient numbers. More staff are needed to support a growing number of vulnerable people, she added.
Occupations which are allowed to use foreign workers due to shortages include ship and hovercraft officers and racehorse trainers.
There is also a shortage of skilled chefs, civil and chemical engineers and veterinary surgeons, while quantity surveyors and project managers are needed for property development and construction.
Some other occupations in the hospitality and construction industries were considered by the MAC but rejected from the final list.
On Sunday an all-party group of MPs called for "balanced migration" and four-year limits for foreign workers.
The group said Britain will not be able to cope with an estimated seven million additional migrants forecast to arrive by 2031.