Influx of foreign IT staff in UK

 

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By Elizabeth Wolfe

Posted on 11 Mar 2008 at 12:40

The number of foreign IT workers coming to the UK has increased 14% in the past year, according to data obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the Association of Technology Staffing Companies (ATSCo).

Last year, 38,450 work permits were issued to foreign IT workers. That number, which only includes workers from outside the EU, represents an increase of 209% over the past five years.

"Organisations have been offshoring UK IT jobs in order to cut costs, but now they are exploiting the leaky visa system to import cheap labour from abroad," claims Ann Swain, chief executive of ATSCo.

The vast majority of the workers (82%) come from India, with the US in a very distant second place. Most of the incoming workers are from multinational companies, tranferring from foreign offices to the UK.

Importing IT workers from other markets may be cheaper and easier, but ATSCo believes that the practice is harming IT professionals already in the UK. "Our concern is that the British IT workforce is being bypassed and that this is damaging the long-term competitiveness of the UK IT industry," says Swain. "Is it any wonder so few students are choosing IT when entry-level jobs are being sent offshore and workers are being brought in from overseas for mid-level positions?"

Although companies are required by law to search for candidates within the UK before turning to foreign labour markets, this process isn't stringently policed. "With the Home Office inundated with applications, the concern is that some organisations are only paying lip service to the legal requirement to thoroughly search for candidates within the UK," Swain claims.