Will Brexit mean you be facing a skills shortage?
The Immigration Act 2020 became written into law this month November 2020, subsequently the new UK Immigration Points Based System will certainly come into law from 1st January 2021. Organisations will therefore require a sponsor licence to recruit and recruit any individual from outside Great Britain, or any individual without settlement status.
Recruiters are being told to submit their applications for a sponsor licence at the earliest opportunity because the process may take up to three months, and some individuals are already checking whether prospective employers have a licence at the employment interview point.
From 1st January 2021, anybody you bring in from outside the united kingdom for the Skilled Worker route will have to demonstrate that:
· these people have a job offer from a Home Office licensed sponsor
· they converse English at the necessary level
· the job offer is at the necessary skill level of RQF3 or above (equivalent to A level)
· they’ll be paid not less than £25,600 or the ‘going rate’ for the job offer, whichever is bigger.
Workers could also enter the UK if they can demonstrate that they have a job offer in a specific shortage occupation or a PhD relevant to the job as long as the salary is no lower than £20,480 a year.
Action to take now:
Apply for a sponsor licence
Check that your current EEA workers possess settlement status – they have until 30th June 2021 to apply.
Forecast your workforce and skill requirements for the next twelve months.
Should you be concerned that Brexit may result in a skill shortage within your company, then there are numerous steps that you can take such as:
Develop a strong employer brand by emphasising your company’s values
Boost your employee retention by evaluating your employee experience from recruiting, to onboarding, and what it is like to work for you
Get rid of non-essential requirements, for instance having a degree as you might be happy to teach the right person
Think about candidates with transferable skills
Offer apprenticeships
Develop your workforce, give them new skills through various learning & development programs
Use AI to undertake those repetitive tasks
If you would like further information regarding the topics discussed, please contact me (Dan) at dan@beaglehr.com or call 020 7097 8852
