THE UK government on Sunday (6) announced increased fines for employers and landlords who allow migrants without papers to work for them or rent their properties, as part of measures to deter migrant arrivals.
The Conservative government, languishing in the polls ahead of a general election due next year, wants to stop illegal crossings of the English Channel in small boats.
The Home Office said "illegal working and renting are significant pull factors" for migrants making the dangerous journey.
Civil penalties for employers will triple to up to £45,000 per worker, it said in a statement.
Fines for landlords will rise from £1,000 per occupier to a maximum of £10,000, with fines for lodgers also increasing.
The fines will be higher for repeat offenders.
Landlords and employers are required to check the eligibility of their employees and tenants.
The new penalties will come into force in early 2024, according to the Home Office, which said they were last revised in 2014.
"Making it harder for illegal migrants to work and operate in the UK is vital to deterring dangerous, unnecessary small boat crossings," immigration minister Robert Jenrick said.
Barge controversy
Prime minister Rishi Sunak, who became leader last October, has pledged to stop the thousands of migrants crossing the Channel following an uptick in arrivals.
Last month his government passed a law, criticised by the United Nations, that bars asylum claims by migrants arriving via the Channel and other "illegal" routes.
It also mandates their transfer to third countries, such as Rwanda, but that element of the law has been bogged down in court challenges.
London also wants to reduce the cost of hotel accommodation for asylum seekers waiting for their claims to be processed, and has suggested the use of disused military bases, barges and even tents.
The Bibby Stockholm, a barge docked on the southern coast of England and set to house up to 500 asylum seekers despite local opposition, was expecting its first arrivals last week but has experienced delays.
Jenrick told Sky News on Sunday that the first asylum seekers would arrive on the barge "in the coming days" and assured that the facility is safe.
Also on Sunday, the main opposition Labour party said that if elected it would temporarily continue using barges and other infrastructure already in place while a backlog of asylum claims is tackled.
Labour's spokesman for immigration, Stephen Kinnock, said he was "confident" that if his party formed a government it would get on top of the backlog "within six months".
(AFP)
Fines for employing unauthorised migrants hiked
Landlords and employers are required to check the eligibility of their employees and tenants
English questioning rose from 20 per cent to 31 per cent, and racist jokes from 36 per cent to 41 per cent
Workplace violence against Black and ethnic minority employees rises to 26 per cent
Highlights
The Trades Union Congress surveyed 1,044 Black, Asian and ethnic minority employees. The results show clear increases in racist behaviour between 2020 and 2026.
Workers having their English questioned rose from 20 per cent to 31 per cent. Those hearing racist jokes went up from 36 per cent to 41 per cent.
Racist comments made to workers or around them increased from 31 per cent to 36 per cent.
Violence and threats
The most worrying finding involves physical threats and violence, which jumped from 19 per cent to 26 per cent.
Racist posts shared on workplace social media grew from 22 per cent to 28 per cent. Racist materials being passed around increased from 19 per cent to 25 per cent.
Beyond direct racism, many workers face unfair treatment. Nearly half (45 per cent) said they get harder or less popular jobs.
Over two in five (43 per cent) receive unfair criticism. The same number (41 per cent) stay stuck on temporary contracts.
Work conditions got worse too. Those not getting enough hours rose from 30 per cent to 40 per cent.
Workers denied overtime went from 30 per cent to 37 per cent. Being kept on short-term contracts increased from 33 per cent to 41 per cent.
Direct managers cause most unfair treatment (35 per cent), followed by other managers (19 per cent).
Bullying mainly comes from direct managers (30 per cent) and colleagues (28 per cent). Racist behaviour mostly comes from colleagues (33 per cent) and customers or clients (22 per cent).
Paul Nowak, TUC general secretary, said: "Black and ethnic minority workers are facing appalling and growing levels of racism and unfair treatment in Britain. This racism is plaguing the labour market – and it's getting worse."
The TUC is calling for urgent government action to tackle the problem. The union wants ring-fenced funding for the Equality and Human Rights Commission to enforce workplace protections.
It is pushing for mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting for companies with over 50 employees.
The TUC says the Employment Rights Act, which makes employers responsible for protecting workers from harassment by customers and clients, will be an important step forward.
The union also wants employers to treat racial harassment as a health and safety issue and monitor ethnicity data across recruitment, pay and promotions.