Migrant care workers to leaflet Shabana Mahmood constituents over longer wait to settle
Summary
Migrant care workers and the Unison union are campaigning in Birmingham against a UK government plan to double the time migrant care workers must wait before applying for settlement from five to ten years. They argue this will hurt care workers and the social care sector, while the UK Home Office says settlement should be earned due to high migration levels.Key Facts
- The Unison union and migrant care workers are leafleting in Shabana Mahmood’s Birmingham constituency to protest immigration changes.
- The government plans to extend the wait time for migrant care workers to apply for settlement from 5 years to 10 years.
- Around one-third of all care workers and one-fifth of NHS workers in the UK are migrants.
- The proposed rules may require even longer waits for those who entered illegally or claimed benefits.
- The union opposes the current employer sponsorship system, which they say can lead to worker exploitation, and suggest a public-sector sponsorship scheme instead.
- A consultation on these proposals ended in February and received about 200,000 responses.
- Unison says the longer wait risks losing experienced care staff, worsening social care shortages.
- The Home Office defends the changes, stating settlement is a privilege that must be earned and highlighting recent high levels of low-skilled migration.
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