India, Nigeria Emerge Biggest Employment Growth Countries as UK Names Firms Sponsoring Work Visa
- According to data, Indians and Nigerians saw the biggest growth in employment in the UK between 2019 and 2023
- Employment for non-EU workers increased by 1.2 million, while employment for UK citizens decreased by just 29,000
- The biggest growth in employment were India (+488,000), Nigeria (+279,000), Pakistan (+101,000), and Ghana (+55,000)
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) statistics show that between 2019 and 2023, Nigerians and Indians experienced the greatest increases in employment in the UK.
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The European Union (EU) citizens' employment rate in the UK decreased by around 10% over the time under review, while the employment rate of non-EU individuals increased by 69%, as per a freedom of information (FOI) request filed by former government minister and member of parliament Neil O'Brien.
According to O'Brien, the data demonstrated the "extraordinary changes" in the labor market that have occurred since January 2021, when Britain implemented a new immigration system in the wake of Brexit.
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Steep decline in earning for migrants
Out of the 1.481 million more jobs the UK reported over the requested time, 1.465 million were held by non-EU workers, while 257,000 were held by UK citizens.
“Within that non-EU total, the biggest growth in employments in absolute terms were among nationals of India (+488,000), Nigeria (+279,000), Pakistan (+101,000), and Ghana (+55,000),” O’Brien wrote in the report analysis.
“There were also 175,600 more employments held by people from unspecified other non-EU countries.
“But it is pretty striking that the UK economy has created more additional employments for nationals of both India and Nigeria as single countries than for UK nationals over this period.”
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Non-EU workers had a 1.2 million gain in employment in the UK private sector, compared to just 29,000 for UK citizens as reported by TheCable.
In contrast to UK citizens, India and Nigeria had sharp drops in earnings.
The data indicates that, before the pandemic, young working-age adults in both nations earned 15% and 10% more than their British counterparts, respectively. However, they now earn less.
According to data, non-EU migrants are now filling positions that were previously held by EU workers before Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic. Economist Ben Brindle of Oxford University's Migration Observatory shared this insight in an interview with the Daily Mail.
Companies eligible to sponsor work visa
Legit.ng earlier reported that the United Kingdom updated its list of companies permitted to sponsor skilled immigrants through the temporary worker immigration route.
According to checks by Legit.ng, the latest list, updated on Friday, May 24, 2024, now includes 113,919 approved companies.
This indicates that 14,063 companies have been added to the approved list compared to the 99,856 approved at the start of 2024.
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Source: Legit.ng
