The reaction came after Home Secretary Sajid Javid published the government’s delayed White Paper on immigration. Plans within the White Paper include scrapping the cap on the number of skilled workers such as doctors and engineers from the UK and elsewhere, while also launching a consultation on a minimum salary requirement of £30,000 for skilled migrants seeking five-year visas.
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Meanwhile, lower-skilled and unskilled migrants will not routinely be able to come to the UK and settle permanently.
Workers from “low-risk” countries in Europe will be allowed to come to the UK without a job offer and seek work on a 12-month visa as a “transitional measure” aimed at helping industries like construction that are dependent on EU labour.
The new system could be implemented from 2021.
But Mark Robinson, chief executive of public-sector-owned procurement specialist Scape Group, described the plans as “hugely disappointing” and warned that combined with an ageing workforce, making it harder for migrant workers to come to the UK “could cause the sector to grind to a halt”.
He said: “Given that three-quarters of EU nationals currently working in Britain earn less than £30,000 in sectors such as construction, and the UK is doing nothing to encourage the 40,000 EU citizens with low skills who currently reside in the UK to remain. We are going to face a real problem come 2021 when the new system is expected to come into effect.
“Without enough construction workers it will not be possible to build crucial new homes and infrastructure at the rate the UK needs. The Government could ease the minds of the industry and classify construction workers as highly skilled. Construction trades require specific and detailed knowledge and it is a classification that is as arbitrary as it is unhelpful and could be hugely damaging to the UK.
“There is also more we can do at home. The government and industry need to work together to encourage and educate young people of both genders about the opportunities available in construction, and provide essential funding for training.”
Federation of Master Builders (FMB) chief executive Brian Berry said: “What’s particularly worrying is the Government’s obsession with salary thresholds for migrant workers entering the UK. The figure of £30,000 was floated in the Migration Advisory Committee report and was met by fierce opposition from almost all sectors. It makes no sense to draw meaningless lines in the sand when we should base our immigration policy on what will make our economy strong and productive. The White Paper also states categorically that it will make no allowances for so-called low-skilled workers. This is wrong on two levels – firstly, the definition of low skilled will cover most construction tradespeople and secondly, genuinely low skilled workers, such as labourers, are essential to the safe and smooth running of any construction site.”
He added: “12-month work visas for occupations in short supply during the transition period simply won’t cut it. Small and medium-sized construction firms, which make up 99% of the industry, do not advertise for roles internationally.”
