Global Young Executive (GYE) » Employment

The UK Job Market: It’s not for everyone

Hettie — Fri, 08 Aug 2014 20:47:10 +0000

It is hardly a wonder that the UK are now witnessing serious calls to tackle immigration and Cameron’s immigration policy changes fall neatly in line with his recent Eurosceptic cabinet reshuffle. Last week he announced that the time period in which non-nationals would be able to claim benefits would be halved from six to three months and they would also be unable to claim benefits for their first three months of stay within the UK. This stance is certainly directed towards the many voters that the Tories are wishing to reclaim from UKIP. However, a scan of Twitter quickly confirms that they have not been won over and many consider this to be too little, too late. Essentially, the tightening of immigration has taken Cameron 4 years and has been criticised for being conveniently announced in the run up to the general election, making it difficult for many voters to see this action as little more than campaign propaganda.

Alongside this reduction of benefits Cameron has pledged to stop more than 500,000 British jobs being advertised across the EU. Previously under the EURES scheme, all positions advertised in the UK had to be offered to EU citizens as well. On top of this, the scheme provided European workers with funding to cover travel expenses for interviews within the UK, relocation costs, English lessons and gave UK firms up to £1000 if they hired foreign workers. Arguably, the fact that of the 2.4 million jobs advertised on the EURES site, 1,138,847 were UK based jobs indicates the root of the UK’s immigration issue and subsequently the high levels of unemployment experienced particularly amongst young school and college leavers. Thus, Cameron’s calls to clamp down on recruitment agencies that only seek foreign labour and to reduce the advertisement of UK jobs within the EU should see employment benefits for the UK’s younger population, but these changes have wider implications, especially when considering the impact on the UK’s economy.

Cameron’s immigration policies are certainly intended to paint a more promising future for Britain, with the suggestion of many more jobs available and a reduction of benefits being allocated to non-nationals. However, critics have scorned this as nothing more than a cheap attempt to win voters especially considering that these policies go directly against the economic advice of the IMF who have warned that restrictive immigration policies within the UK could hinder productivity growth. This follows from an IMF report, which outlined that:

‘relaxing immigration requirements in areas with labour shortages such as manufacturing could provide a boost to productivity and facilitate the rebalancing of the UK economy.’

Thus, surely Cameron’s calls to reduce immigration are set directly against the IMF’s recommendation and indicate that he values pleasing the Eurosceptic punters above fostering the UK’s economy? This is, however, perhaps unfair as Cameron has clearly stated within all of this that the immigration changes still recognise the economic value of many immigrants and that the UK will continue to grant visas for graduate entrepreneurs and those of exceptional talent who will contribute to its growing economy. As Cameron has said, this is all about

‘carefully and painstakingly…building an economy that has real opportunities for our young people’

and should his projected outcomes of these policy changes prevail, the benefits should be seen directly in youth unemployment levels.

How does your country find a balance in this political hot-topic? Do you think the UK is handling it in an appropriate way?

Feature image: source

The UK Economy Update: Not Out Of The Woods Yet

Hettie — Sat, 26 Jul 2014 12:21:31 +0000

Yesterday marked somewhat of a breakthrough for the UK economy. Having exceeded its pre-crisis peak, back in early 2008, it isn’t a surprise that the headlines have taken the opportunity to boast, especially considering that the IMF have announced the UK to be the fastest growing economy amongst developed countries. Whilst there is no doubt that this is a step in the right direction and it is certainly refreshing to hear good fortune within the economy, we here at the global young executive are certainly not celebrating yet and fear that the emphasis put on the 0.2% growth since the pre-crisis period may overshadow the work that is yet to be done. A 3.1% growth since the second quarter of last year sees the UK’s economic growth edging above that of our friends across the pond and considering that globally the growth for 2014 was downgraded by 0.3% it seems we are growing faster than all other major developed countries. With this comes a huge nod of approval to George Osborne, his long-term economic plan and in his words, ‘the hard work of the British people,’ but what does this all mean for us?

If you, like us, are recent graduates seeking your spot with the working world, surely the prospect of graduating simultaneously with economic growth is music to your ears? Granted this should mean more jobs and essentially more security for us as we enter a daunting but exciting period in our lives, but a deeper understanding reveals that we are still a long way from prosperity. GDP per head is not set to recover for 3 more years and wages after inflation have been reduced over £1,600 a year since 2010. It’s hardly a surprise then that many economists have sought to point out that our economy is still a long way from its 2008 peak in terms of GDP. Additionally, John Hawksworth, chief economist at PwC, makes a valid point in outlining that this growth is not yet sustainable. (Hence, why we aren’t celebrating… yet.) He predicts a slowdown in consumption post 2015 which will subsequently hinder the recovery process. But, what is perhaps most concerning is the fact that it taken us a long and hard six years to get the economy to merely 0.2% above it’s prior peak. As Michael Burke points out an additional 180,000 people are in employment than when the recession began, but output is only a fraction above its pre-recession starting point and whilst jobs are being created this is falling far short of the scale required to keep up with our ever growing workforce.

So whilst on the surface this is seemingly a good time for the UK economy, don’t pop the champagne yet. There is still a long way to go without mentioning the potential economic repercussions of the current crisis in Ukraine and instability in the Middle East. The IMF have warned that these issues present oil price risks which have the potential to drastically hinder the global economy, so we are certainly not out of the woods yet.

Image Source : The Market Mogul

Zero Hours = Zero Hassle?

Milly Bygrave — Wed, 16 Jul 2014 21:06:54 +0000

Employers benefit through cutting cost by placing employees on zero-hour contracts, a practice whereby the business is obligated to provide the employee with a minimum guarantee of zero hours, great for the business in terms of flexibility and low commitment for short-term and temporary staffing but distressing for those who struggle living in financial uncertainty.

According to the research conducted by the CIPD a shocking 14% of people on zero hour contracts do not feel they receive sufficient working hours each week to accommodate a basic standard of living. A percentage, which many fear may continue to rise with the popularity of the zero-contract as an option for businesses. The report continues with expressing the fear that zero hour contracts may be used as managerial manipulation tools, using the offer of extra hours to incentivise employees to act in ways beneficial to the business. If companies deter discrimination or harassment tribunal claims using this tool, there may be an even greater problem for employees to face, which is sadly exasperated with the introduction of tribunal fees earlier this year.

Furthermore, employees working under a zero hours contract do not attain the same employment rights as those on an employment contract as the requirement for a full employment contract calls for the expression of “mutuality of obligation” within the contract. Interestingly, recent case law has indicated a trend for tribunals to recognise “mutuality of obligation” if a zero hour contract employee is working on as assigned task as obligation is created in this piece of work, even though it could be a one-off, thus fortunately there is a recognition of employee protection.

Zero hour contracts can, if implemented fairly, be a great way for employees to work with flexible hours and for companies to maintain lower overheads associated with the fixed costs of labour- a winning scenario for all! As long as we don’t see any repeats of Sports Direct’s appalling manipulation of their part-time staff who were termed ‘casual’ staff leaving them not only ineligible for the company’s bonus share scheme but being denied paid annual leave, sick pay and all other employee benefits available to full-time staff whilst placing the same obligations on the ‘casual’ workers as the full-time workers. This unjust employment system was used to take advantage of the 20,000 part-time Sports Direct employees.

The moral of the story – zero contracts aren’t terrible but make sure your employment contract is not unlawfully denying you of your employment rights.

If in doubt regarding your employment contract and you do not know where to go or who to ask to clarify any questions then talk to your local Citizens Advice Bureau who will be able to offer impartial, free, confidential and unbiased information about your employment contract.

Use the link below to find your local bureau!

http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk

Additionally ACAS provides great online resources for any employment questions or queries, alongside offering an advice line as well, see the link below.

http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1360

photo credit: Labour Youth ~ Óige an Lucht Oibre via photopin cc

Networking: Daunting but Rewarding

Milly Bygrave — Wed, 16 Jul 2014 20:54:33 +0000

Networking is often a daunting prospect for even the more confident of us. Walking into a room of strangers tasked with making small talk and forging a useful career connection for the future is no mean feat. To make sure you get the most of networking events read our guide on how to get the most out of this experiences so you don’t walk away empty handed after all of your efforts.

feature photo credit: michael.heiss via photopin