How policy affects the employment of migrant workers around the world

According to Mayumi Soh of Pinsent Masons MPillay, the Singapore joint law venture between MPillay and Pinsent Masons, in recent years, Singapore has tightened its approach on the employment of foreign workers. Employers are generally required to consider Singapore citizens for employment opportunities prior to offering a position to a person from overseas.

Among other initiatives, Singapore has introduced a series of legislative changes that are aimed at promoting fair and transparent hiring, and these rules prevent employers from favouring foreign workers over local workers. Some examples of the measures introduced include:

• the Fair Consideration Framework, and;
• more stringent foreign worker quotas arising from Local Qualifying Salary (LQS) requirements.

These measures serve to ensure that fair and equal consideration is given to all applicants and that Singaporean workers are not unfairly prejudiced in the hiring process. That said, Singapore has always maintained its position as an open economy with its companies being welcoming of foreign workers.

Facing an ageing population demographic and declining labour force growth, Singapore is keen to tap into the skillsets and expertise of foreign workers which will help the country plug gaps in its workforce.

One view which has been taken by the Singapore government is that the tighter workforce policy should not be seen as a tool used to bluntly reduce the number of foreign workers. Instead, it is a way to strengthen the complementarity between the foreign and local workforce, focused on the ability of foreign workers to supplement and enhance the skills and expertise of Singaporean workers.

‘Emiratisation’ is a core policy in the UAE, aiming to provide Emirati citizens with increased job opportunities and career growth within their home country, according to Dubai-based Luke Tapp of Pinsent Masons. By encouraging businesses to hire and train local talent, the UAE aims to reduce reliance on foreign workers and bolster its economic development.

The regulations and the broad reach of the Emiratisation rules have significantly developed since January 2023. Initially, the updated Emiratisation requirements were focused on larger private companies with 50 or more employees, but in a significant move the UAE government has recently expanded the program to include private companies with between 20 and 49 employees.

Under the new rules, selected businesses will be required to hire at least one Emirati citizen by 2024, with the requirement increasing to two Emiratis by 2025. The decision will be applied to targeted establishments across 14 economic sectors, including: information and communications; financial and insurance activities; real estate; professional and technical activities; administrative and support services; arts and entertainment; mining and quarrying; transformative industries; education; healthcare and social work; construction; wholesale and retail; transportation and warehousing; and hospitality and residency services.

Target establishments will be notified via the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s (MoHRE) digital channels that they are subject to the new requirements. MoHRE has indicated that criteria – such as types of jobs; work environment; geographical location; the nature of growth in a given economic sector; and Emiratisation priorities – will be considered when it selects the targeted establishments.

Failure to comply with the specific quotas for large and small employers within the UAE will result in fines of Dh96,000 ($26,000) for non-compliance in 2024, and Dh108,000 ($30,000) by 2025. Other penalties and sanctions could also follow. To mitigate the risk of fines and to prepare for the year ahead, all businesses should begin thinking of creative measures to recruit Emiratis and incorporate nationals into their workforce.

The UAE has further committed to the 'NAFIS' program, a federal initiative aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of Emirati workers. NAFIS facilitates the recruitment of Emirati graduates wishing to work or get involved in training programs offered by the private sector. The programme offers financial incentives by bridging the salary gap and contributing to pension payments for Emirati workers.

Migrants working in China are generally subject to work permit requirements, though with certain exceptions, according to Ginger Zhou of Pinsent Masons in Shanghai. To apply for a work permit, the applicant must have an employer that is registered in China with no record of serious violation of laws or loss of creditability. In principle, the job concerned in an application should be one for which there is no suitable local candidate. 

Applications can be processed under three different categories: foreign high-end talent (Category A); foreign professionals (Category B); and other migrant workers (category C). There are different criteria for each category, taking into consideration both the market demand as well as the background of applicants.

While there is no cap on applications under Category A, this is not the case in Categories B and C. Applications under Category B could be restricted depending on changing market demand, while Category C may be subject to quotas specified under relevant national regulations.

Category A applicants are commonly scientists, scientific and technological leaders, international entrepreneurs, and others with specialist talents – in essence, people with the skills urgently needed for China's economic and social development, or whose talents reach the minimum score for foreign high-end migration. Applications under category A are not subject to any limitation on age, or a requirement for specific academic achievement or work experience. A fast track is available.

Applicants under category B are those who are urgently needed for economic and social development in China but whose skills fall outside the scope of high-end talent as defined under Category A. Applications must adhere to guidelines for foreign workers in China Those guidelines stipulate that the applicant has at least a bachelor's degree, two years or more of relevant work experience, and is no older than 60 years. Those restrictions can be eased in exceptional cases, where there is a real need for offering a specific job to a specific applicant.  

Category C is primarily reserved for temporary or short-term jobs which do not exceed 90 days, and jobs to which a quota is imposed for the employment of migrant workers. This includes foreign students who come to China for internship according to intergovernmental agreements, qualified foreign students who graduate from universities in China or overseas, and foreigners who work in special fields such as the sea fishing industry.

Without obtaining a work permit, a foreigner’s employment with a Chinese employer will not be protected under employment laws in the country. In addition, both the employer and the foreign national employee could be subject to penalties under immigration law.

According to Breeze van Eck of Pinsent Masons in Luxembourg, EU citizens have a right of priority over third country nationals in the internal labour market in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg. This means that hiring non-EU workers is usually an exception that is only allowed if the individual has residence and work permits.

To tackle a shortage of skilled labour, a series of modifications have been put in place since 1 September 2023. These include, but are not limited to, the possibility of immediately obtaining permission to work in Luxembourg for prospective employees who hold residence permits as family members of other residents or migrants, as well as a new simplified recruitment procedure for any other migrant worker.

Holders of a residence permit based on being the family member of a third country national

Holders of these residence permits have the required authorisation to reside in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg but, until recently, had no automatic permission to work; a separate work permit application was needed. From 1 September 2023, holders of these permits no longer need to apply for or obtain a work permit; instead they immediately have access to the labour market through their residence permission.

Simplified recruitment procedure

Simplification of the recruitment process means that the following now applies:

• a declaration of the vacant position must be made by the employer at the ADEM (Agence pour le développement de l’emploi);
• the vacancy is then compared to the published list of professions in serious shortage in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg – the list is published annually by the ADEM.
• where the profession relevant to the vacancy appears on the list, the ADEM is no longer required to carry out a resident labour market test, nor to check whether there are any prior registered job applicants suitable for the role. Instead, after the declaration of the vacancy at the ADEM by the employer, within five working days the ADEM will directly grant a certificate attesting that the employer has the right to recruit a third-country national.

This quick and simple process only applies where the vacant position is included on the ADEM shortage list. If the vacant position is not included, the ADEM will need to examine the declaration of vacancy within seven working days and check whether other nationals are suitable for the position. It will only be if there is no job seeker who corresponds to the vacant position, or if any potentially suitable job seeker is proven to be unsuitable by the employer, that a certificate granting the right to recruit a third-country national can then be issued.

According to Manchester-based Shara Pledger of Pinsent Masons, there have been changes to the UK’s approach to foreign workers since the Brexit referendum – a central message of the Brexit campaign that leaving the EU was an opportunity for the UK to “take back control” of its borders. Despite this, net migration has continued to rise and was especially high in 2022, partially driven by skilled migrant workers.

Work visas currently account for around 25% of non-EU migration to the UK. It is possible that, as more time passes since the end of the Brexit transition period, we could see their significance increase for the EU migrant population also.

UK government statistics make for surprising reading. The government said that “there were 267,670 work visas granted to main applicants in 2022” and that this is “almost double (+95%) the number prior to the pandemic in 2019, and 64% more than in 2021”.

These figures indicate that the UK is welcoming to migrant workers, but it would be wrong to say that it is easy for an individual to relocate to the UK for work. There are various obstacles that are faced by both employers and workers, including the need for a visa – visa-free work activity in the UK is heavily restricted. A further barrier is the degree of commitment needed from an organisation hoping to sponsor a worker, and the cost of applying – which is due to significantly increase from early 2024.

Not every role in the UK can be performed by a migrant worker. There are minimum skill and salary requirements for a role to be suitable, but these requirements were relaxed post-Brexit, in apparent contradiction of the campaign messaging, making it easier for a worker to apply. The relaxation reflected the need for a wider pool of applicants as the UK lost its immediate access to EU workers. In addition to this change, the cap on sponsored worker applications has been suspended since the end of 2020, and there is no longer a requirement for a ‘resident labour market test’ to evaluate whether a suitable British or settled worker can fill a role.

Immigration remains a highly politically charged issue in the UK. In reflection of that, it is unlikely that recruitment of migrant workers will become any easier. Individual industries are already struggling. Energy and shipping must grapple with complicated rules for offshore workers, even if those workers never arrive at a UK port, and sectors such as hospitality are wrestling with an immigration system that has shut out opportunities for many of their roles due to perceived skill deficiency.

Overall, while the number of visas is high, this is reflective of international trends and is no indication that the UK is a ‘soft touch’.