Migrant Workers Recruitment

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Eligibility

It is a criminal offence to employ a person who either:

  • has no right to work in the UK, or
  • has no right to do the work you are offering

Guidance is available from the Home Office and Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), outlining checks you should undertake on all workers to ensure you stay within the law. This is available from the businesslink website.

Changes to the Highly Skilled Migrant Workers (HSMW) scheme

The Border and Immigration Agency (BIA) is in the process of changing the way migrants can enter the country.  The main changes are towards an Australian points based system, to allow HSMW to enter the UK without a job offer and give employers more responsibilities when acting as sponsors to migrant workers.  For more information please visit www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/workingintheuk/

You should also ensure any migrant workers have applied for a National Insurance number (this should be done through Job Centre Plus www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk or by calling 0845 600 0643.

Useful contacts

More information on eligibility to work in the UK is available from the Home Office website www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk or by calling 0870 606 7766. There is also guidance on the businesslink website at www.businesslink.gov.uk/workintheuk and a step by step tool at www.businesslink.gov.uk/emw

Appointing Workers

There are three key steps when appointing workers…

  1. Contracts
    It is a legal requirement for you to provide either a contract of employment or a job description in both English and the migrant worker’s native language within 8 weeks of them starting work with you. You can obtain further guidance on contracts from Business Link
    (www.businesslink.gov.uk 0845 600 9006) or the BERR (www.berr.gov.uk/employment  020 7215 5000)
  2. Income tax and NI
    It is a legal responsibility to register workers for income tax. Information is available from the Inland Revenue on www.hmrc.gov.uk or 0845 366 7851.
    You should also arrange workers National Insurance (NI) contributions. Migrant workers must apply for an NI number through Job Centre Plus (www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk 0845 600 0643).
  3. Induction
    All workers should undergo a site induction before commencing work. This should cover:
  • An understanding of practices in the workplace
  • The role of the worker in the workplace
  • Dealing with problems in the workplace
  • Adapting to an unfamiliar culture or environment
  • How to request assistance if needed
  • Information on medical facilities, trade unions, etc

ConstructionSkills has a number of products to support you in carrying out inductions with migrant workers, including:

You should also consider carrying out inductions in foreign languages if workers do not speak sufficient English.

Workers Rights

Migrant workers are entitled to the same employment rights as the domestic workforce. This includes:

  • Working conditions
  • Working hours
  • Pay and the minimum wage
  • Holiday entitlement
  • Entitlement to sick pay and sick leave
  • Maternity and parental leave
  • Workplace policies including grievance and disciplinary procedures

The TUC (Trades Union Congress) provides a series of guidance materials on workers rights entitled ‘Know your rights’, with some literature available in foreign languages. Visit www.tuc.org.uk/tuc/rights_main.cfm to see what’s available.

Useful contacts

Further guidance is also available from:

Or, you may want to speak to one of the key construction trade unions, who can offer advice and guidance on workers rights: