The UK Government’s Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has published its completed 2023 review of the Shortage Occupation List (SOL). It makes recommendations as to which occupations should be added to the SOL and details why the MAC believes the list should be scrapped altogether.

The Shortage Occupation List (SOL), is a feature of the Skilled Worker route. It lists occupations where employers face a shortage of “suitable labour” and where the Government has deemed “sensible” to fill those shortages with migrant workers.

Published on 3rd October, the review recommended eight occupations should be added to SOL. Apart from the fishing sector which saw the title of “fishing boat masters” be put forward by the Committee, the report concluded that no further food or farming roles be added to the existing List.

MAC concerned about “increased” risk of exploitation

According to the Committee, the key “benefit” to an occupation being on the List is the reduced salary threshold, as well as the reduced visa fees for those working in a SOL job. However, in the completed review, MAC said that under current legislation, employers are able to pay migrant workers less than the binding general salary threshold (£26,200). According to the MAC, migrant workers relying on the sponsorship of employers to remain in the UK are vulnerable to “unscrupulous employers” who may provide unfit working conditions.

Therefore, the Committee said that “using the SOL to make it easier to recruit low-wage workers increases the risk of this exploitation.” It also claimed that low-wage employers are likely to be unable to afford administrative costs, and the associated fees make hiring migrant workers unviable for low-wage employers.

For these reasons, MAC recommended that Government abolish SOL altogether, suggesting that the MAC be commissioned to “examine individual occupations or sectors where the labour market issues seem particularly acute.” It suggested that the Committee could report on these issues, and identify to what extent immigration policy may or may not be helpful, suggesting alternative routes or changes to wages, training and investments where needed.

Alternative routes to employment are more preferable

The authors of the review said that the SOL was not designed to meet the needs of every employer across the UK, and that some employers may benefit from seeking assistance through other routes like the Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS). This scheme allows young people to work in the UK for up to two years without a formal sponsorship from an employer.

MAC argued that the expansion of the YMS to more countries located close to the UK would be more beneficial for some of the more fluid sectors, as visas are not linked to an employer and so allow free movement between employers and reduce the risks of exploitation that are prevalent in low-wage employment.

The completed 2023 review said that SOL can be a misleading name, as “some employers and Government departments interpret it as purely a list of all occupations in the UK that are currently in shortage.” It suggested that Government considers renaming SOL to the Immigration Salary Discount List (ISDL) to avoid confusion and correctly reflect its function in the immigration system.

Stakeholders in reviewed occupations “did not meet the evidence threshold set”

In his letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman, Professor Brian Bell, chair of the MAC, said: “We have recommended eight additions to the UK-wide SOL and a further two additions to the Scotland-only SOL. We acknowledge that we have recommended relatively few occupations for inclusion on the SOL despite the labour market remaining tight and much evidence of shortage across the economy.

“Despite the Government providing us scope to consider lower training requirement (RQF 1-2) occupations for addition to the SOL, the Committee made the decision not to recommend any such occupations for inclusion.

“Stakeholders in these occupations did not meet the evidence threshold set, including a clear demonstration of efforts made to recruit from the domestic labour market.”

Bell continued: “We were also concerned about the risk of exploitation of workers in many of these roles. In our view, low-wage employment is where the most serious exploitation of workers occurs, and this risk is heightened for migrants on the SW route given their reliance on being employed by a sponsoring firm to remain in the UK.

“If the Government wishes to retain the SOL as it currently is, we plan to launch our next (minor) review of the SOL in Spring 2024.”