Construction Industry Brexit Manifesto
WHY DOES CONSTRUCTION MATTER? WHAT CAN GOVERNMENT AND
INDUSTRY DO TO BOOST
The construction industry should be viewed by the
CONSTUCTION SKILLS?
Government as a strategic industry, as without it
Ministers will be unable to meet their ambitious plans for
the delivery of new homes and infrastructure projects. i. EXISTING WORKFORCE RETENTION
Approximately 300,000 businesses operate within
the construction industry – a sector that accounts for
around 7% of GDP and employs three million people. Labour Force Survey statistics show that 12.6% of
Construction represents 10% of total UK employment construction workers were born outside the UK and
and is a key driver of jobs and economic growth right 5.7% were born in EU accession countries (Eastern
across the UK. Therefore the skills requirements of our European countries that joined after 2004). We know
sector must be taken into account as the Government that in London and the South East, the percentage of
shapes its post-Brexit skills and immigration policies. the workforce made up of EU nationals is considerably
This industry’s skills needs range from site operatives to higher, and in London is closer to 50%. Given the severity
postgraduate scientists and the widest range of different of the skills shortages we already face, the retention of
specialisms and skills levels in between. Below are some these workers is of critical concern to the construction
recommendations to the Government and the industry industry.
regarding how we can help ensure we have a sufficient
number of skilled construction workers now and in the Recommendations to the Government and industry
longer term.
1) The Government should embark upon a
communications campaign that makes clear to
EU workers currently residing in the UK that
they will have no serious impediments to gaining
settled status.
2) Industry bodies and construction employers
should work with the Government to put this
message across more clearly to their members and
their existing EU-national employees.
3) The Government should at the earliest possible
opportunity state that the cut-off date, after which
those arriving can no longer have expectation of
guaranteed settled status, will be the later date of
the UK’s actual withdrawal from the EU, not the
date on which Article 50 was triggered.
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ii. DETERMINING THE INDUSTRY’S
FUTURE NEEDS
The construction sector understands that the
Government needs greater clarity from the industry
regarding what its skills requirements are in terms
of EU migrant labour. This requires a stronger evidence
base, and a much clearer understanding of how
migrant labour currently enters and exits the UK
construction industry. The construction industry is
keen to work together to develop a credible evidence
base. CITB is engaging in extensive research to
map future skills need by occupation, the extent to
which this can be met from within the UK workforce
and training capacity and the remaining ongoing
requirement for migrant workers.
Recommendations to the Government and industry
“Industries with a current
4) Industry bodies should continue to work with reliance on immigrant
CITB to conduct a construction industry-wide
census and other research that provides a clear workers should not face
evidence base regarding skills requirements a ‘cliff edge’ in terms of
and future training needs, now and in the
longer term. incoming migrant workers.”
iii. TRANSITION PERIOD AND RULES
The transitional arrangements suggested so far differ
little from existing arrangements, in terms of freedom
of entry and exit. Yet, this is about far more than ease
of entry - the industry’s need will only be met if the
arrangements as a whole are attractive enough to
continue to draw new workers to the UK. It is not
obvious they will be. For one thing, for those entering
the UK during the implementation period there
appears to be little certainty that they will have the
right to remain beyond those two years. Two years is
not a long time to develop a new system of visas or
other immigration routes to replace the existing free
movement arrangements, and few believe the existing
‘Tier 2’ regime for non-EU immigration is fit for purpose
or can easily be scaled up.
Recommendations to the Government and industry
5) The Government should agree a transition period
of at least two years as soon as possible.
6) The Government should introduce a transitional
“The construction industry regime that involves a clear path to settled status
for those arriving during this period to ensure
is keen to work together that EU workers continue to be attracted to the
UK to live and work. Industries with a current
to develop a credible reliance on immigrant workers should not face a
evidence base.” ‘cliff edge’ in terms of incoming migrant workers.
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iv. POST-TRANSITIONAL FRAMEWORK
The industry needs to step up and be much more
ambitious in terms of its plans to recruit and train many
more UK workers than it does currently. In the longer
term, the construction industry needs to greatly reduce
its reliance on migrant labour. However, it takes at least
two to three years to train most on-site tradespeople
and a minimum of seven years to train built environment
professionals. As such, and given the extent of the
current skills shortage and record high employment
levels, in the short-to-medium term it will not be possible
to recruit the people we need without ongoing access to
significant levels of EU migrant labour.
Recommendations to the Government and industry
7) The construction sector should agree what it can
realistically achieve in terms of increased training
and recruitment of homegrown workers over the
next five years based on the industry-wide census. 11) The Government should introduce a post-Brexit
immigration system that takes into account that
8) Any future migration visa system should be based the vast majority of the construction workforce are
on key occupations that are in short supply rather employed by small and micro firms and that asking
than on arbitrary thresholds based on skill levels these firms to sponsor foreign workers, or engage
or income. with the current Tier 2 system for non-EU workers,
is not realistic and will simply not work for this
9) The Government should ensure that for those industry. It probably is not realistic for larger firms
taking up these visas the terms of their stay in the either given the extent of self-employment in the
UK are attractive enough and of sufficient length to industry.
ensure that such quotas can actually be met – this
will likely mean a longer visa period than two years 12) In order to create a more flexible regime that
and include the possibility of settled status. can work for industries like construction with
a prevalence of small employees and self-
10) The Government should take into account the employment, Government should ensure that
centrality of self-employment models within the registered employment agencies, or migrant
construction industry and the importance of self- workers themselves, are able to apply for
employment in allowing migrant workers to access occupation-based visas and the Government
the construction labour market (half of all EU should allow and encourage the market to
workers are self-employed). develop new intermediary mechanisms.
This joint Construction Industry Brexit Manifesto has the support of the major construction umbrella
groups and federations in the sector, including:
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) does not take an opinion
on or endorse the recommendations of this manifesto, but it will be working
closely with the group of trade bodies who are signatories to this report to
coordinate the evidence and the necessary response in terms of training and
recruitment for that part of the construction industry that CITB covers.
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