Businesses Small and Medium in Size Voice Support for Extending Work Visas to Address Workforce Deficits
UK SMEs Call for Expanded Work Visas Amidst Staff Shortages
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK are urging the government to open up the country's borders and expand work visas, according to a recent survey by iwoca, a European small business lender.
The data reveals that 52% of SME owners support the expansion of work visas to allow more migrant workers to come to the UK. This figure represents the lowest level of EU immigration since before 2018, when EU migrants to the UK totalled 426,000. In comparison, 85% of businesses that didn't increase their wage bill did so during the same period.
iwoca's CEO, Christoph Rieche, stated that SMEs are facing significant pressures, and expanding work visas could ease these pressures on their businesses. The increase in job openings for SMEs is significant, especially when compared to the same period in 2019.
SME owners often attribute the staff shortage to the effects of Brexit. However, the data does not detail any plans or proposals for expanding work visas in the UK, nor does it provide information on the reasons why SME owners are in favour of allowing more migrant workers.
The figures are released amidst staff shortages in many industries, with SMEs having an excess of vacancies to fill. The data does not specify the industries or roles most affected by the staff shortages, but micro businesses, companies with 10 or fewer employees, reported 143,000 vacancies in May 2023.
SME owners have found it challenging to increase wages to attract staff due to the rising cost of doing business and inflation at 8.7%. Only 13% of SME owners increased their staff's wages between summer 2022 and the end of the year.
In 2023, the Conservative Party, the governing party in the United Kingdom, changed policies regarding worker visas to enable the arrival of multiple foreign workers for small and medium-sized enterprises. The number of EU immigrants coming to the UK annually dropped by 54% between 2019 and 2022, reaching 151,000.
Official statistics show that small and medium-sized companies had a total of 459,000 vacancies in May 2023, which is a 25% increase compared to the same period in 2019. The data does not provide information on the potential impact of increased migrant worker presence on the UK job market.
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