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New EU migrants are helping to tackle UK skills shortages, says CIPD survey

According to research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), more than one in four employers are planning to recruit from abroad in the current quarter. The CIPD say it’s professional and high skill vacancies that are fuelling the international search for labour.

Findings in the CIPD’s quarterly Labour Market Outlook, which reports the results of a survey of 1,300 employers, included:

* 27% of employers intend to recruit from abroad in this economic quarter;

* The dominant reasons for recruiting from abroad given by employers are a shortage of candidates with the required experience (59%) or the required skills (56%);

* 18% also highlight a greater level of commitment and willingness to work than UK based jobseekers, with only 5% citing lower wage costs;

* 56% of employers recruiting from abroad are looking to fill professional (48%) or skilled trade (8%) vacancies; 19% are filling manual vacancies, and less than 5% are seeking to recruit to unskilled vacancies.

Dr John Philpott, Chief Economist at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, said: "Any efforts to improve the management of the migration system must take great care to ensure that the legitimate needs of employers are met, while also securing the wider interests of the economy and society. Our research shows that more than one in four employers are planning to recruit from abroad in the current quarter – highlighting the real need for migrant workers to fill vacancies.

"A flexible assessment system, as seems likely to be brought forward by the Government, should offer comfort to the many employers forced to look abroad to fill professional and skilled vacancies.

"There is a false impression that migrant workers are predominantly being shipped in to fill low skill, low wage jobs, but the reality is that it is professional and high skill vacancies that are fuelling the international search for labour.

"However, if the system is set too rigidly there is a danger that employers will find themselves falling behind international competitors due to a shortage of the people needed to deliver business growth. Policy makers must make sure that they do not allow efforts to address public concerns about migration to result in legislation that will damage economic growth."

External link

CIPD’s quarterly Labour Market Outlook will be available from the CIPD website www.cipd.co.uk/surveys from the 20th June 2005.

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