Love or hate to talk about it, there’s no getting away from that infamous “B-word”.

Brexit has been dominating our headlines for over a year, leaving in its wake a trail of uncertainty and questions raised over the future of businesses right here in the UK…and in particular, the future of EU workers.

In recently leaked documents, it seems the government will be taking a hard line towards EU workers, extending rules that currently only apply to non-EU migrant workers.

In a two-fold proposal, access to the UK jobs market could be markedly restricted; firstly by closing access to low-skilled jobs for EU nationals, and secondly by only allowing EU nationals to apply to jobs paying a minimum of £30,000.

So where does that leave our UK businesses?

This will no doubt have a big hit on our economy – for many industries, including those in tourism and manufacturing, more than 90% of migrants currently working in the UK will no longer be eligible under the new proposals.

It’s certainly a worry for businesses that rely on foreign workers to keep their sectors functioning, and only puts more pressure on the government for a practical plan to be put in place for the post-Brexit UK labour market.

The question over whether the post-Brexit immigration rules will create a skill shortage, and a demand for workers that our own labour market may not be able to meet, is a serious one…and of course, the true impacts on the economy will remain to be seen.

Other options for labour relief are few and far between; while automation has been put forward as a viable alternative to a reduced labour pool, the reality is that this will likely prove too expensive an investment for many SMEs.

How then, can businesses recruit from a reduced post-Brexit labour pool?

Despite concerns over staffing issues, and a no-doubt a drastically reduced pool of potential workers, it isn’t all doom and gloom. Certainly, there will be new challenges to overcome, but there is no reason why many UK businesses won’t be able to recruit as successfully post-Brexit as they were before the election took place.

The principals of recruitment remain the same; you need to be able to find the best talent out there that is best suited to your roles…and that means having the right people on board that can help you find it.

If you have concerns over the impact Brexit might have on your staff, or would like to know more about how we can help you source the best possible talent for your vacancy, feel free to get in touch with the team here at Clayton Recruitment – we’d be more than happy to help.