A new survey reveals that the UK has become less attractive as a work destination for international talent since Brexit.
LinkedIn’s sixth UK Workforce Report reveals that the UK lost more professionals to the 27-member nations of the EU in the first quarter of 2018 than it gained from them.
Migration has been steadily falling since the UK voted for Brexit, and LinkedIn’s data reveals that the number of professionals arriving to the UK from the 27 EU states has decreased by 26 per cent over the last year.
In addition to seeing a reduction in the number of EU27 professionals relocating to the UK, there has also been a reduction of 20 per cent in the number of professionals migrating from the rest of the world to the UK over the last year. This is supported by the experiences of recruiters, as nearly a third (28 per cent) of recruiters believe that the UK has become less attractive to candidates from the rest of the world.
Unsurprisingly, London is the region most impacted by the Brexit vote. Since the referendum, the net inflow of EU27 talent into London has been declining. More people are now leaving London to relocate to the EU27 than vice versa. This is substantiated by the experiences of recruiters in the capital, with 54 per cent saying that it is having a ‘big’ or ‘huge’ impact on hiring. LinkedIn’s data has also revealed that domestic migration is not filling the gap left by the reduction in international talent.
The LinkedIn data also revealed that hiring fell in 6 out of the 12 nations and regions in the UK. The findings showed that March saw an overall decrease in the number of hires made, continuing the downward trend since January. The overall rate was down 1.2 per cent in March compared with February, with the North East, North West and Wales seeing reductions of -5 per cent, -5 per cent, and -10 per cent respectively. London also saw a decrease for the second month in a row, down by a further 2 per cent in March.
Article published 3rd May 2018