The Home Office has granted sponsorship licenses to at least 177 care companies despite their recent employment record.
Employment tribunals, Health and Safety Executive or the National Minimum Wage Enforcement Team found that the companies had violated labour standards.
According to a large scale analysis by Violation Tracker UK, of companies registered with Care Quality Commission (CQC), and licensed by Home Office to sponsor migrants, unfair dismissal is the most common offense, followed by unauthorised wage deductions and discrimination.
These figures were released as part of the Work Rights Centre report, which was based on interviews and surveys with care workers who are migrant. The report found that 65% workers had reported employment rights violations in the past 12 months. These included health and safety breaches as well as bullying and discrimination.
Interviewees said that they felt unable to complain because of social pressures, distrust of authorities and fears of retaliation by their employers.
Many interviewees were afraid that reporting their employer to the authorities would result in their visa being curtailed. Several carers also described situations where employers threatened to curtail visas to suppress grievances.
It was also difficult to leave exploitative situations. Fewer than half of the workers (38) who tried to find another sponsor were successful.
The care workers also raised the issue of low pay and unpredictable work hours.
Ashley Stothard is the immigration executive for Freeths national law firm. She said that this report was very troubling.
She stated that the fact that providers of care who had been guilty of unfair treatment still held licences for sponsoring migrant workers “raised ethical and regulatory concerns”.
Power imbalance
Stothard stated: “From a purely legal perspective, the situation highlights a need for stricter enforcement and oversight of sponsor licenses. Migrant workers have restrictive visa restrictions that bind them to their employer, making it hard for them to switch jobs.
The imbalance of power favouring the employer allows migrant workers to be exploited with little fear of repercussions.
She said that since care workers are prohibited from bringing their family members into the UK, there is a further lack of support and isolation. The abuse of migrant workers could undermine the integrity of the UK immigration.
The only way to fix the problem is by revoking licenses and tightening regulations. She said that the need for more care staff shouldn’t justify mistreatment. It is the responsibility of the government to hold care providers accountable.
A spokesperson for the government said that they were “deeply concerned” by reports of unethical practice in the adult social care industry. They added that they would continue to take action if evidence of abuse was found.
The government acknowledges the need for reforms to improve the attractiveness of the adult social care industry, support growth in the workforce and increase retention. The sector must also ensure that international recruitment is ethical and sustainable.
The end of sponsorship
The government has announced the creation of an agency called Fair Work that will strengthen enforcement powers in relation to modern slavery, the national minimum wage and immigration laws.
The Work Rights Centre called for urgent reforms to the immigration system in order to “address power imbalances” between employers, migrant workers and visa holders.
The report’s authors said that the best way to accomplish this was to abolish the sponsorship system. “But at the very least, the Home Office must give visa workers enough time to switch sponsors and guarantee those who have been exploited the right to work without restriction to prevent further exploitation and destitution.”
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