Roofers Added to UK Shortage Occupation List

ROOF TILERS AND SLATERS are among the roles recently added to the Shortage Occupation List following concerns of a skills shortage in the construction industry.

The UK government has also relaxed visa restrictions for overseas workers after reports from the Migration Advisory Committee in May and the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) in March which appealed for easier access to construction workers.

The following roles have now been added to the Shortage Occupation List:

• Roofers – roof tilers and slaters
• Bricklayers and masons
• Carpenters and joiners
• Plasterers
• Construction and building trades not elsewhere classified

Shortage Occupation List 

The addition of these occupations to the List has been welcomed by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB). Eddie Tuttle, CIOB Policy, Research and External Affairs Director, said: “We very much welcome this announcement which in our view is long overdue. The addition of these roles to the Shortage Occupation List is something we have called for through the Construction Leadership Council and we’re glad the industry’s voice has been heard as the construction sector directly plays a vital role in the UK economy and is an enabler to so many others.

“While we acknowledge our industry needs to work harder to attract workers from here in the UK, there is an immediate skills shortage which must be addressed and without a good supply of skilled workers from abroad, as well as homegrown talent, projects large and small including the likes of schools, hospitals, new homes and key infrastructure simply won’t happen.”

Suzannah Nichol CEO, Build UK

This sentiment was echoed by Suzannah Nichol, chief executive of Build UK, who said: “It is vital that construction is able to fill vacancies and quickly address shortages around particular roles.

“We welcome the news that five occupations will be added to the shortage occupations list, which will help the industry continue to deliver the schools, homes, hospitals and infrastructure that we need.”

However, in June the move to recruit roofers from abroad was dismissed by Hudson Contracts’ Managing Director Ian Anfield, who said the inclusion of roofers on the Shortage Occupation List was unlikely to make a difference and argued that people would not have the time or resources to recruit from abroad.

In response, the CLC acknowledged the ‘complexity’ of the process and recommended that companies should set aside sufficient time to complete an application for a Sponsor Licence, of which the Home Office says most decisions are made within eight weeks.

>> Read more about the Shortage Occupation List in the news