Employment Agencies for non Citizens in the UK
Employment law in the UK is fairly stringent, so it is difficult to find an employment agency in the UK which specializes in finding work for non-citizens. In general the UK employment laws state that employers can only employ workers who are UK citizens, who have permission to live and work in the UK or who are are citizens of the European Union (EU) and are therefore free to move within the borders of the EU. There are exceptions, for example employers requiring specialist workers that they cannot find in the UK are able to recruit workers from overseas, however this is very closely monitored by the Government.
One of the first requirements for any jobseeker in the UK who arrives at interviews or registers with employment agencies is to provide a valid passport to prove his/her entitlement to work.
The UK Job Centres offer a full employment agency service for job seekers in the UK and can often provide financial support to unemployed people needing to travel to interviews or even to purchase suitable clothing for interviews.
There are a number of private employment agencies in the UK who tend to specialize in different fields of employment recruitment, for example: catering and food industries, warehousing, office and secretarial jobs, factory production work and agricultural jobs. People who have recently arrived in the UK and have permission to work should seek out the employment agencies in their area and register with them. A quick walk around any city centre or town centre will soon enable new arrivals to locate the many employment agencies in their area and also most of these agencies will have job adverts in the windows, so it is possible to see the type of employment opportunities these agencies specialize in.
It is well worth registering with employment agencies as many of them have long standing contracts with a number of the larger employers within towns and cities and may even offer free bus transport to and from the workplace. In many instances, permanent employees will have started work via an employment agency and, once they have proved their worth, they will be offered a full-time and permanent contract by the employer.
Illegal immigrants and non UK citizens who do not have permission to work in the United Kingdom will tend to work within what is termed the 'black' economy. They will often work in poor and substandard conditions for employers who do not pay them the minimum wage or have training or health and safety practices within place. These workers have no employment rights at all and are subject to the whim of their criminal employers.
