Labour unions and stakeholders in the UK’s care sector have strongly opposed the government’s plan to halt the recruitment of foreign care workers, calling it a short-sighted policy that threatens to exacerbate the challenges faced by the industry.
According to The Guardian UK, the UK government is expected to release a new immigration white paper on Monday, which includes a proposal to stop the recruitment of care workers from abroad.
This measure is part of the government’s broader strategy to reduce legal migration and prioritize local workers.
The announcement has sparked backlash from unions and sector leaders, who stress that the care sector is already grappling with a severe shortage of staff and financial pressures, making the dependence on foreign workers essential to its operation.
Professor Martin Green, CEO of Care England, criticized the government’s move, calling it an unfair blow to a sector that is already struggling.
“The care industry has been operating on limited resources, escalating operational costs, and significant staffing gaps for years,” Green said.
“While international recruitment wasn’t a perfect solution, it offered vital support. Now, to remove that without providing alternatives is callous.”
Unison, the UK’s largest trade union, also condemned the policy and called for urgent clarification regarding the future of foreign care workers already employed in the country.
Christina McAnea, General Secretary of Unison, emphasized that migrant workers have been instrumental in keeping the UK’s health and social care systems functioning.
“Thousands of migrant health and care workers have been essential in maintaining services. Now, they face uncertainty about their future. The government needs to guarantee that they won’t be forced to leave,” McAnea said.
She also criticized the government’s classification of care roles as “low-skilled,” stressing that workers in the sector deserve higher wages and greater recognition.
Statistics show that in 2023, over 58,000 foreign care workers entered the UK via the skilled worker visa route, making up almost half of the new additions to the care workforce.
In contrast, the Labour government has defended the decision, calling it a necessary step in resetting the immigration system to reduce reliance on foreign workers and focus on developing the domestic workforce.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, in a BBC interview, argued that there are still underutilized pools of workers within the UK.
“Employers should look to hire from the existing workforce, including individuals on current visas who have not yet been deployed,” she said.
“We also believe there is potential to extend some visas, but it’s time to end the recruitment of new foreign care workers.”