Britain faced a shortage of labor. The lack of personnel, which began in agriculture and the hotel business, due to the exit of the country from the European Union (EU) and Pandemic, spread almost to the entire middle business sector, reports The Guardian.
The study of the Consulting company BDO has shown that 38 percent of companies remained without foreign workers. “Brexit, visa difficulties for foreign workers and restrictions associated with a pandemic have created ideal conditions for the crisis in British enterprises,” said the representative of the company ED DHU. According to him, Britain faced a serious problem, because the middle business is the engine of the economy for the whole country.
More than a quarter of 500 surveyed companies stated that the lack of workers caused a decrease in production capacity and reducing product reserves. Now firms have begun to consider production reduction options, they plan to raise prices, which also caused concerns about the growth of inflation due to the approach of Christmas sales. At the same time, almost a fifth of the companies surveyed increased wages and introduced additional benefits to attract new employees. Almost half of the companies will raise salaries. More than one third of the companies declared a reduction in the number of products and services offered, they plan to do the same next month if the situation does not improve. Researchers note that the consequences for consumers can be significant, because prices will have to grow in the next three to six months to compensate for the resulting deficit.
Also a consulting consulting company CGA and Fourth showed that the hotel sector suffered from lack of workers: each sixth position is currently vacant. The shortage of truck drivers has already led to a lack of fuel across the country and hit the meat processing industry. Farmers warned that they will have to destroy hundreds of thousands of pigs if the government does not issue a visa to migrant workers. Large companies in the country, such as TESCO, warned that the problem can lead to empty shelves in supermarkets if the government does not weaken immigration rules.