Non-UK workers ‘could be made to wait’

Employers are set to have to advertise any positions to Britons for one month before they open up applications to non-UK workers, it has been revealed.

Home secretary Alan Johnson also announced that as of next year, careers posted in JobCentre Plus offices will be advertised to just UK nationals for double the time currently required, in order to dissuade employers from opting for a “cheaper alternative”.

Furthermore, those who enter the UK as a result of qualifying as a skilled worker will now have to be offered at least £20,000 annually, up from the current salary of £17,000.

“These changes will ensure that businesses can recruit the skilled foreign workers that the economy needs, but not at the expense of British workers,” Mr Johnson said.

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Non-UK workers will also need to be employed by a company for one year before they are eligible for a transfer to the UK-based premises, up from six months.

Brendan Barber, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, recently urged that the whole of the UK could benefit from the skills migrant workers bring.