Brexit: Food Manufacturing Labor Crisis Looms as Sector Squeezed by Shortages, Warns New Report

24 May 2017 --- A new report examining the serious pressure the UK’s food manufacturing sector will be under if the labor supply of European Union migrants dries up after Brexit, urges that safeguards be put in place now to stave off a worsening of the crisis. The sector, already squeezed by shortages, will worsen, and will need to recruit up to 140,000 new workers by 2024, according to the new briefing paper co-produced by Manchester Metropolitan University for the Food Research Collaboration, an initiative of the Centre for Food Policy at City, University of London.

The report - Earning a Crust: A review of labor trends in UK food manufacturing’, talks about the double challenges of potential workforces shortages within the British food manufacturing workforce which includes 117,000 employees. A large proportion is made up of EU migrants as food manufacturing has become largely dependent on these workers, who are often clustered in low-pay or unskilled roles.

To produce the report, Dr Morley and co-author Dr Michael Heasman, food industry expert and editor of The Food Sustainability Report, uniquely compiled and analyzed an extensive list of existing workforce and economic data concerning food manufacturing - still the largest manufacturing sector in the UK.

They found particular challenges facing businesses related to skills shortages, pay, job security, career progression, working conditions and the introduction and application of technologies.

The authors said that government and industry should consider the impact of dominant supermarket chains and their relationship with manufacturers; the entrenched use of low-skill, low paid workers on casual, temporary or seasonal contracts; and the lack of information with which to inform policy and debate.

Speaking with FoodIngredientsFirst, co-author of the report, Dr Morley, tells us more about the labor shortages problem and what can be done to try to turn it around.

“The problem the food industry faces is that it has become highly reliant on EU migrant labor so even small changes here might have a major impact. It is widely expected that the Conservative party will form the next Government and in their manifesto published last week they re-stated the goal of reducing migration to the tens of thousands,” he says. 

“The 'free movement of people' also appears as a major issue regarding the Brexit negotiations and with the fall in the value of the pound against the euro there is also some indication that the UK is not seen as such an attractive place to come and work - although this can change.” 
 
“Labor needs also needs to be considered in the 'round' - it is not just EU migrant labor that is needed, but the food industry has said it also needs to recruit up to 140,000 new recruits by 2024 as people leave or retire from food manufacturing. Then there is the question of finding people with the right skills, research shows many young people don't see the food industry as an attractive career option and of course the food manufacturing is also competing with other industries for both EU migrant labor and skilled British workers.

Responding to questions about how the government and industry goes about finding a fresh supply of labor to plug the gaps, Dr Morley says that many companies have Codes of Conduct with respect to their suppliers that often include items relating to labor conditions and these need to be implemented and monitored effectively or where none exist companies can develop such Codes. 

“Successful team working, especially if it involves workers from different cultures or backgrounds, does not happen by chance and requires proper training and supervision - companies need to engage in this to help deal with some of the negative working practices and attitudes towards migrant labor,” he says. 

“Many of these workers are sourced through agencies, there is therefore an opportunity, even a responsibility, for agencies to look to develop better ways to engage British workers into seasonal or temporary work and this will require investment in terms of educating people about such opportunities and helping educating people into seeing this as an attractive option. Government, of course, has a role to play here as well, by ensuring more attractive pay and conditions.”

He adds that having a fresh supply of labor means having better training and more skilled workers which would then lift innovation and productivity. 

“It is not simply a question of quantity but of quality of the workforce. It is here that government together with industry can play a more proactive role helping to produce a coherent and meaningful industrial strategy, with resources to back it up, that includes raising skills and productivity.”

Seasonal Agriculture Scheme 
Seasonal agricultural workers are generally employed from March to September with the peak months between May and July. In 2013, nearly 20,000 EU2 nationals worked on farms under the previous scheme knowns as SAWS with most of these migrants working in horticulture, particularly fruit-picking.
 
They received a card granting permission to work for a specific UK employer. And most people were aged between 18 and 25 and earned more than £300 (US$389.70) per week in 2013.
 
SAWS ended at the end of 2013 and it has been suggested by industry bodies that a new type of seasonal workers scheme might be devised as a way of filling labor shortages in food sectors for the future. 
 
“At the moment we do not know if this will become policy and this is creating a great deal of industry uncertainty which adds to business risks. There is a need for some sort of political reassurance on these matters, not just for the food sector but other areas of economic activity as well,” continues Morley.
 
“Until this happens industry will continue to be worried and concerned. In our report we set out the food manufacturing labor issues in the 'round' to show that the debate needs to be broader than Brexit alone, even though this is critically important, and there is a need for a collaborative strategic approach to address these wider labor needs and challenges. Without an integrated, long-term and strategic approach the fundamental and structural labor issues food and drink manufacturing face will not be dealt with.” 

The Food Research Collaboration (FRC) is an initiative of the Centre for Food Policy at City, University of London, funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.The FRC facilitates joint working amongst and between academics and civil society organizations (CSOs) to improve the UK food system.

by Gaynor Selby