Vital access to overseas labour for pork processing plants and farms is set to be significantly reduced due to recent changes to the Skilled Worker route.
British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) chief executive Nick Allen said meat plants were ‘deeply concerned’ about the changes, while the NPA has urged the government to rethink the policy.
Following the post-Brexit pig sector labour shortages of a few years ago, the Skilled Visa route has acted as a viable, if expensive, alternative for pig businesses. For example, pork processing plants have brought over a number of people from the Philippines through the scheme.
However, changes introduced on July 22 have raised the threshold for skilled worker visas from occupations at regulated qualifications framework (RQF) level 3 and above (approximately A-level skills) to occupations at RQF level 6 and above (mainly graduate professions).
At the same time, salary requirements for work visas have been raised across all bands. For example, the minimum salary for Standard Skilled Workers will increase by £3,000 to £41,700.
NPA public affairs manager Tom Haynes said the change means a reduction of around 180 eligible occupations, including veterinary nurses, farm secretaries, farmers and butchers. The changes include transitional arrangements for existing skilled worker visa holders, however.
Home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “These new rules mean stronger controls to bring migration down, to restore order to the immigration system and ensure we focus on investing in skills and training.”
Utter frustration
However, Mr Allen said the changes will leave the meat sector struggling to source labour, once again. “It is a major concern and utter frustration for us that they keep turning the screw and making things more and more difficult, without really addressing the major problem of immigration,” he said.
He said raising the RQF threshold ‘effectively takes butchers out of the equation’, while the scheme has become even more expensive.
“It is making food production increasingly difficult. The processors wouldn’t be doing it if they could get local labour. These people are coming in on good wages – those wages are being offered locally and there are just not the takers for it,” he added.
In its response to Baroness Minette Batters’ review of farm profitability, the NPA urged the government to rethink the plans. It said the rule changes would appear to make this route ‘unworkable’ for the farms and processing plants that currently use it.
“We wish to see the government look again at these immigration routes, and specifically how we can once again recruit overseas labour.” it said.