UK hubs for exploited migrant carers are of little help

A major UK initiative to match thousands of exploited migrant care workers with employers has helped less than 4% find jobs, according to a Freedom of Information request, casting doubt on the government’s efforts curb the industry’s reliance on new employees brought in from abroad.

More than 28,000 migrant care workers whose visas were tied to their employer had to be referred to government job-finding “hubs” between May 2024 and April 2025, according data released by the Home Office in response to an FOI from charity the Work Rights Centre.

 That was after they lost the job they were supposed to fill when UK Visas and Immigration officers discovered more than 470 employers were exploiting staff and revoked their licenses to sponsor overseas workers.

But just 941 of those so-called “displaced” migrant staff signposted by UKVI for support, or 3.4%, reported finding alternative employment.

 The small proportion who’ve been helped calls into question the government’s plan to bring down job vacancies in social care by utilizing the pool of displaced workers, after it banned recruitment of overseas social care staff last month in an effort to reduce immigration.

After Covid, England desperately needed more care workers, and thousands of people from around the world answered that call in good faith,” said Dora-Olivia Vicol, chief executive of the Work Rights Centre. 

“But instead of jobs they got scams, and instead of justice they got a referral to a program that simply doesn’t work as intended.”

She urged the government to “rethink their approach” to migrant care workers by fully reforming the Health and Care Worker Visa so it isn’t dependent on employer sponsorship.

The Home Office has previously said 10,000 of the 40,000 who were displaced had found alternative work.

 A spokesman said the FOI figures “do not provide a complete picture and workers were initially under no obligation to report their employment outcomes back to their regional partnership.”

“We’re hearing a lot of moans about the hubs,” said Jane Townsend, chief executive of the Homecare Association which represents UK home care providers. 

Some businesses looking for workers said it had taken months to speak to anyone at the hubs, she said. “What we’re hearing from lots of people is that they’re not replying to emails.

There doesn’t seem to be a sense of urgency — and of course the clock ticks for the displaced workers, they’ve got 60 days to find another job, otherwise they get deported.”

Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nri/work/uk-hubs-for-exploited-migrant-carers-are-of-little-help/articleshow/121670748.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst