The PCG, the trade association for more than 14,000 small
businesses, mainly in the IT and engineering sectors, is preparing
a dossier of examples of such abuse to present to the Government
which it claims show that large companies are using the scheme to
replace UK IT workers with overseas workers under the guise of the
skill-shortage legislation - even though the skills are plentiful
in the UK.
The so-called Fast Track Visa scheme is intended to operate at
several levels to meet a 'known' skills gap within the UK or to
transfer essential workers from overseas offices. However, the PCG
says it has evidence that this system is being abused by some
companies who are importing cheap labour to cut their own costs and
replace similarly-qualified UK workers who are then made redundant
or have contracts terminated.
Jane Akshar, Chairman of the Professional Contractor Group,
said:
"This scheme is being used as a skills
replacement, not to meet a skill shortage. That cannot be what this
Government wants. At the moment, the IT sector is in the doldrums -
many qualified IT workers are unemployed or out of contract. But
the Government's skill-shortage list allows companies to import
these skills at exceptionally low rates and in many cases, the
workers are not eligible to pay any tax in the UK, while UK workers
are already qualified for these roles.
"The problem is that the Government's
justification for this scheme is out-of-date. Some of its evidence
for skill shortages is based on research dating back more than two
years when there was high-demand in the IT sector and the dot.com
companies were booming - that is no longer the case. But some large
companies are using this to their own advantage.
"Anyone who is close to the IT world knows
that this sector is in recession - up to one in three contractors
are out of contract at the moment; IT rates are being slashed;
almost weekly there are reports of IT workers losing their jobs;
and recruitment agencies are consistently reporting a huge
down-turn in the sector. These are not the signs of an industry
with a 'skill shortage'.
"Also, we are aware that the scheme to allow
companies to transfer workers between countries is being abused. We
have heard of cases where 'sham' companies have been established
just to provide a base for 'transfer'."
The PCG set up an on-line reporting system for its members and
others in the IT field to identify examples where the system is
being abused. The first tranche of these abuses are now being
handed to Government.
