Your Employees Need You: Don’t Let Brexit Steal Your Talent!

Guest blog: Kathryn Barnes, Employment Counsel EMEA, Globalization Partners

“The crashing waves of Brexit will be seen across organisations for many years to come, and nowhere will it be felt more keenly than among its high-value and highly-skilled employees.

The UK’s departure from the European Union will create some significant challenges for organisations whose workforces include non-British nationals. Having been accustomed to operating freely across the EU/EEA, a candidate’s nationality (providing they are an EU/EEA citizen) didn’t need to be considered when hiring – it was all about the best person for the job.

But things have changed as of January 1st 2021. As Big Ben chimed in the New Year, free movement of EU/EEA citizens has been replaced by a new ‘points-based system’. This will impact not only non-British employees working in the UK, but also very likely British nationals working in the European Union will be affected.

The scale of the challenge ahead for organisations cannot be under-estimated and many will have a tough task ahead understanding the employment law implications and ensuring all the right paperwork is in place. Latest figures show that there are 1.3 million UK nationals living in EU countries – that’s a significant administrative burden for firms to tackle.

Even though employers and employees have been given a six month grace period up to June 30th 2021 to get their paperwork in order, what happens after that is not clear. It is likely that right to work checks will be carried out and EU citizens will need to satisfy the requirements – but nothing is confirmed. The only thing that’s clear is that many uncertainties remain.

For those non-UK based companies struggling to navigate Brexit’s choppy waters, who can’t go down the points-based route to retain or hire talent in the UK, an Employer of Record (EOR) could be a port in the storm. It can also help employers manage hiring in EU/EEC countries without the need for relocation into the UK or without the Company having to set up in other EU/EEC countries. This will ensure they have access to the highly skilled talent the business needs. Ultimately an EOR can help firms keep hold of their most important asset – their people.”