As employers begin to assess the full impact of a Brexit on their organisation and workforce, UK recruitment is expected to drop following Britain’s vote to exit the EU.
Experts have said that the huge uncertainty brought by the referendum result could have a big impact on the economy, whilst also making employers cautious over recruitment, causing them to postpone hiring decisions for the foreseeable future. Some institutions in the financial sector have already started to make restructuring changes and it is expected that there will be a significant increase in businesses using temporary agency workers.
A challenging period for the UK workforce
A recent survey by career discussion platform PathMotion of 50 of the largest graduate employers, has also revealed that that half would reduce their recruitment if the UK voted to leave the EU.
Kevin Green, Recruitment & Employment Confederation chief executive, said he expected that a vote to leave the EU will bring a challenging period for British business and for the UK workforce. But he was also optimistic, “We hope that…referendum result leads to a step change in the way we prepare current and future jobseekers in the UK, so that new entrants to the jobs market are better equipped with the skills and attitude that employers need.”
Right to stay in the country
Some business experts think it likely that EU citizens currently working in the UK will be able to keep their right to stay in the country, potentially through a worker registration scheme, but it is unclear how this will work in practice.
But it is expected that there will be restrictions placed on EU workers within the UK, so companies need to review their workforce plans and start to assess the impact on their workers straight away.
Businesses will continue to feel very uncertain until the UK’s exit strategy has been made clear and trade negotiations with the EU are finalised. Some campaigners have already called for a halt to some legislation that is currently going through parliament, until the UK’s future is made clearer. However others have argued that the Government should not delay the April 2017 start for the apprenticeship levy. With a target of three million apprenticeships starting by 2020, this could provide a reassuring and useful opportunity for UK employers to be able to hire from a pool of skilled workers in the future.
Further assistance
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