Crackdown ‘doomed to fail’

Proposals to use “the full force of government machinery” to crack down on rogue employers employing illegal immigrants have received short shrift from unions.

Immigration minister James Brokenshire last month declared that the government’s new approach would hit such employers “from all angles” in order to remove “the unfair advantage enjoyed by those who employ illegal immigrants”.

A report in The Times said that immigration officers were preparing to mount a wave of autumn raids which target cleaning contractors, care homes and building sites.

Both the GMB general and UCATT construction unions said the plans were designed to grab headlines rather than tackle the exploitation of migrant workers. UCATT said the initiative was “doomed to fail”.

Both unions said that the obvious approach to the issue is to extend the role of the Gangmasters’ Licencing Authority (GLA), the authority regulating the supply of workers operating in agriculture, food processing and shellfish collection.

GMB national officer Kamaljeet Jandu said that the GLA’s remit should be extended to cover construction, domestic work, care, hospitality and other sectors like private hire.

UCATT national secretary Brian Rye said: “The only truly effective way to deal with problems of exploitation and illegal working is to prevent the rogues entering the industry in the first place.”

www.gmb.org.uk/newsroom/extended-role-of-gangmaster-licencing-authority

www.ucatt.org.uk/extending-gangmasters-act-best-curb-against-illegal-immigrants-operating-construction