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A £1,000 fee levied on European workers would be a “devastating blow” for the hospitality industry, the Lake District Hotels Association (LDHA) has said.
The comment was a response to news last week that government ministers were considering such a levy. Immigration minister Robert Goodwill told peers the “immigration skills levy” could be introduced for EU migrants to help British workers who feel they are “overlooked”.
However, according to the Guardian, the government has distanced itself from the proposal with Theresa May’s spokesman claiming the comments had been “misinterpreted”.
Tim Rumney, vice-chair of the LDHA, said enforcing the fee would be “nothing short of devastating” for the hospitality industry, which he said contributes around £143bn to the UK economy and provides an estimated 4.6 million jobs.
“Several of our member hotels employ European workers, many of whom have worked their way up through the ranks to management positions and built careers for themselves here and are now fearing for the future of their jobs,” he said.
“We are already struggling to fill positions from food and beverage service right up to heads of department because of an absence of good applicants. This policy would pull the rug out from under our ability to employ quality staff from overseas and add even more cost and red tape into our industry.”
Rumney added that he feels the hospitality industry has been “disportionately affected” by government legislation over the past year, and that hoteliers now need to see some form of “clarity and reassurance” on how Brexit will affect European workers in the UK.
