New UK care worker rules shatter dreams in Zimbabwe, Nigeria
Now the British government has said it plans to stop the recruitment of overseas care workers altogether as part of sweeping immigration reforms. Industry bodies worry the sector will struggle to provide quality care without foreign workers.
For Loveness, who did not want to give her last name due to the sensitivity of the subject, the changes signal an abrupt end to her hopes of escaping chronic unemployment in Zimbabwe.
'I had invested all my money into this. And I was this close. Almost,' she said.
The British government introduced the new rules after reports, including by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, revealed widespread exploitation of foreign workers under the Health and Care Worker visa scheme, first introduced in 2022.
Many care workers were charged illegal recruitment fees by their sponsors, some arrived in Britain to find no work, while others said they were treated like slaves.
The government has now stripped hundreds of rogue companies of their licences to sponsor foreign workers, but this has left those who had already been hired in need of new jobs.
The British visa scheme also spawned scams in countries like Zimbabwe, where fraudsters promised healthcare qualifications that never materialised and bogus sponsorships.
Loveness, who lives with her husband and child in Budiriro, a suburb of Harare, had already paid $3,000 to a recruitment agent to help her find a suitable care provider — a widespread practice.
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New UK care worker rules shatter dreams in Zimbabwe, Nigeria
When Loveness got a job offer from an English care provider in March, the 32-year-old Zimbabwean thought her dreams of building a new life abroad were finally coming true. But just weeks later, the company told her they could not proceed because of new rules requiring care providers to prioritise employing workers already in Britain. Now the British government has said it plans to stop the recruitment of overseas care workers altogether as part of sweeping immigration reforms. Industry bodies worry the sector will struggle to provide quality care without foreign workers. For Loveness, who did not want to give her last name due to the sensitivity of the subject, the changes signal an abrupt end to her hopes of escaping chronic unemployment in Zimbabwe. 'I had invested all my money into this. And I was this close. Almost,' she said. The British government introduced the new rules after reports, including by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, revealed widespread exploitation of foreign workers under the Health and Care Worker visa scheme, first introduced in 2022. Many care workers were charged illegal recruitment fees by their sponsors, some arrived in Britain to find no work, while others said they were treated like slaves. The government has now stripped hundreds of rogue companies of their licences to sponsor foreign workers, but this has left those who had already been hired in need of new jobs. The British visa scheme also spawned scams in countries like Zimbabwe, where fraudsters promised healthcare qualifications that never materialised and bogus sponsorships. Loveness, who lives with her husband and child in Budiriro, a suburb of Harare, had already paid $3,000 to a recruitment agent to help her find a suitable care provider — a widespread practice.
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