Britain reveals new restriction on overseas care employees
Care worker visa system dogged by abuse, exploitation
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New guidelines dash hopes in Zimbabwe, Nigeria
By Farai Shawn Matiashe and Nelson Chigozirim
MUTARE, Zimbabwe/LAGOS, June 23 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - W hen Loveness got a task offer from an English care provider in March, the 32-year-old Zimbabwean thought her imagine building a brand-new life abroad were finally coming true.
But just weeks later on, the business told her they might not continue due to the fact that of brand-new rules requiring care service providers to prioritise utilizing workers currently in Britain.
Now the British federal government has said it plans to stop the recruitment of abroad care workers entirely as part of sweeping immigration reforms. Industry bodies worry the sector will have a hard time to offer quality care without foreign employees.
For Loveness, who did not desire to offer her surname due to the sensitivity of the topic, the changes signal an abrupt end to her hopes of escaping persistent unemployment in Zimbabwe.
"I had invested all my money into this. And I was this close. Almost," she stated.
The British federal government presented the brand-new rules after reports, including by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, revealed prevalent exploitation of foreign workers under the Health and Care Worker visa plan, first presented in 2022.
Many care workers were charged illegal recruitment fees by their sponsors, some shown up in Britain to find no work, while others stated they were dealt with like servants.
The federal government has now removed numerous rogue business of their licences to sponsor foreign employees, however this has actually left those who had currently been hired in need of new tasks.
The British visa plan also generated frauds in countries like Zimbabwe, where scammers promised health care qualifications that never materialised and phony sponsorships.
Loveness, who lives with her partner and kid in Budiriro, a suburban area of Harare, had already paid $3,000 to a recruitment agent to assist her find an ideal care company - an extensive practice.
She also spent $555 on a tuberculosis test, cops check and an English language test, and another $300 to get a nurse aide certificate from the Zimbabwe Red Cross in 2023.
She simply required a certificate of sponsorship, an electronic record provided by a licensed company, to secure a visa.
She has actually not informed some of individuals who provided her cash to pay for these products that her mission has actually stopped working.
"I just can not stand the shame."
'CRUEL' POLICY CHANGE
In 2022, Britain opened a brand-new visa path for overseas employees to assist fill more than 160,000 jobs in the care sector following the COVID-19 pandemic and the country's departure from the European Union.
Nearly 20,000 Zimbabweans were granted these UK visas between 2021 and 2024, according to main figures.
Some Zimbabweans left tasks at banks and health centers to try to discover work taking care of Britain's aging population. Loveness herself trained as an accounting professional.
Bongani Mazwi Mkwananzi, executive secretary for media and for the Africa Diaspora Forum, which represents Africans abroad, stated the UK care visa offered an unusual, structured path to employment and monetary stability.
"With domestic joblessness levels very high and incomes well below the cost of living, the UK chance represented a beacon of hope," he said.
Some had actually currently seen their strategies dashed in 2015 when Britain prohibited newly getting here care workers from bringing family with them.
Yotamu Mlauzi Chagwada, president of the Nurse Aides Association of Zimbabwe Trust, said the withdrawal of sponsorship deals had left some Zimbabweans feeling betrayed.
"Labelling this policy terrible may not be an overstatement, considering the monetary and emotional investments these caretakers made," he said.
'DOOR SLAMMED SHUT'
Jane, who likewise did not want to give her last name, spent $800 on a TB test, cops clearance, nurse aide certificate and English test.
When the brand-new restrictions were enforced, she was still raising money to pay a recruitment agency.
"It was agonizing. I almost cried. I lost all my money," said Jane, from the city of Masvingo in southeastern Zimbabwe.
"I am now regretting it. It would have been better if I had actually begun a business."
In Nigeria, the ban on overseas care employees is likewise causing discouragement. An approximated 13,418 Nigerian care workers were approved visas to the UK in 2023 and 2024, representing 19% of the total visas provided for the sector.
Rita, a 31-year-old teacher living in Lagos state, invested months saving for a health care course and paying an agent who promised to secure her a job and sponsorship.
"I feel like my world is falling apart," she stated in a phone interview. "I have actually sacrificed so much ... Now it seems like the door to the UK has been slammed shut."
Emmanuel, a 25-year-old nursing graduate, spent six months scouring the internet to discover a job in Britain and finally got an interview. Today the care company has actually fallen quiet.
"This is not the first time we are hearing that the UK government wishes to stop the care employee visa, but it looks like they imply business this time," Emmanuel stated.
"We have actually been glued to our screens, chasing every lead," he said. "To lastly get an offer and after that hear this news - it's squashing."
For Loveness, there was one small piece of luck. Her hubby had used to offer his automobile to pay the visa fees if she got a certificate of sponsorship. But he had actually not yet discovered a purchaser.
Loveness now operates in a shop in Harare, but her salary doesn't even cover her rent.
"I still have not quit. If I get a chance to transfer to other countries like Australia, I will grab it," she said. (Additional reporting by Nelson Chigozirim in Lagos; editing by Clar Ni Chonghaile and Ayla Jean Yackley. The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters. Visit https://context.news/)
