The Institute of Directors has responded to the States of Jersey’s proposals to reduce licences for migrant workers.
As reported earlier today, Ministers are planning to reduce the number of permissions available to businesses to employ newer migrants.
Large businesses employing more registered workers than other businesses in the same sector will have their requirements assessed by the Population Office.
The business could then be placed into a ‘step down’ programme to reduce the number of registered staff they employ, or into a work permit-type scheme requiring them to demonstrate the value of each new registered worker before recruiting them.
Chris Clark, Chair of IoD Jersey, said: “These measures announced by Ministers send out the worst message at the worst of times for local businesses and demonstrate a distinct lack of joined-up thinking.
“At a time when businesses in Jersey are working through a period of productivity, and when the government has invested heavily in infrastructure to ensure Jersey’s future success, including the Esplanade quarter, these measures appear confusing, ill thought through and likely to have a direct, detrimental impact on Jersey’s potential to prosper, across all industry sectors.
“Particularly with populist politics sweeping across the Western world, and in light of Brexit, there’s a real need to champion stability in policy. These measures fly in the face of that and suggest to any aspirational business that Jersey is not open for business.
“At our Debate three years ago examining population, the clear message was that Jersey needs to relax immigration policy and at the same time address the skills shortage, look at our education system and encourage businesses to focus on training.
“If we don’t do all of this in a coherent way, we’re in real danger of putting our island at risk economically and socially and losing the elements of island life that make Jersey the place we love working and living in.”
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