KEY POINTS
- Migrant care workers in the UK face exploitation and overcrowding.
- Many pay illegal recruitment fees before arriving in the country.
- Fear of deportation prevents workers from reporting abuse.
According to recent study, migrant workers hired to assist the UK’s care industry are being severely exploited; some are being forced to share beds, pay unlawful fees exceeding £20,000, and even sleep on the streets.
Migrant care workers trapped in debt before arriving in the UK
Nearly a quarter of the more than 3,000 people with health and care worker visas surveyed said they had paid advance payments to companies or middlemen in exchange for jobs in the UK.
At least five respondents paid £20,000 or more in fees, while over 100 respondents—many of whom were from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Zambia, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Brazil, and Indonesia—reported paying between £5,000 and £20,000.
According to New Zimbabwe, many migrant care workers live in cramped, unsatisfactory conditions in spite of these exorbitant expenses. Almost 25% of people living in housing provided by their employers said they were compelled to share a bedroom with coworkers.
An anticipated 8.3% of social care positions in England, or over 131,000 openings, remained unfilled in 2023–2024, according to Skills for Care.
However, racism and prejudice are commonplace for these professions. More than 800 employees reported having been the subject of racism in the workplace, according to a poll conducted by the trade union Unison.
Fear of reprisals stops migrant workers from speaking out
Many migrant caregivers worry about reprisals if they report mistreatment. Over one-third of those surveyed claimed that they or a coworker had faced redundancy or termination threats for voicing concerns about working conditions.
In order for migrant care workers to apply for a visa, their employers are required to provide them with a sponsorship certificate. Between April and December 2024, 21,300 applications for health and care visas were filed, according to official data.
However, if an employee quits their job or their firm closes, they run the possibility of being deported if they are unable to find a new sponsor within 60 days.
According to Begum, “a situation where those we rely on to care for the elderly and vulnerable are themselves exploited under Dickensian conditions has been created by chronic underinvestment in care.”
Workers are more susceptible to abuse when their visas are linked to their employers, according to Jamila Duncan-Bosu, a solicitor at the Anti Trafficking and Labour Exploitation Unit.
Because there is little monitoring or responsibility, Duncan-Bosu claimed that the current system is a gift to those who take advantage of foreign workers.
Affected care workers will be assisted in locating other employment, the government further stated, and companies found guilty of breaking employment regulations would have their sponsoring licenses revoked.
