The Growth of EU Labour: Assessing the impact on the UK labour market is based on a survey of 1,000 employers and Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures on migrant workers.
It suggests 57% of businesses currently employ migrant workers. It also found that only 12% of these made the hires because they believe the workers have lower expectations around pay and working conditions.
According to the report, companies that have seen growth over the past two years are more likely to hire migrant workers. More than half (51%) say they are doing so, compared to 39% whose business has shown no expansion over the same period.
The majority of employers (66%) say that the availability of migrant workers has had no impact on the opportunities for workers between 16- and 24-years-old within their company. However, 6% admit it has impacted opportunities for younger workers "to a large extent".
The report also suggests that companies that hire overseas workers are twice as likely to offer apprenticeships and work placements. One-half of those with migrant workers offer the opportunities, compared to one-quarter with no migrant employees.
The report's author and CIPD labour market adviser Gerwyn Davies told HR magazine he hoped the report would "destroy some of the myths" around migrant workers.
"A lot of the reason the myths exist is because there simply isn't a lot of research into this area," he said. "The evidence suggests that instead of hiring migrant workers to save costs on training and opportunities for young people, companies that do so actually offer more programmes such as apprenticeships. Above all it's about migrant workers helping to drive the business forward."
CIPD chief executive Peter Cheese admitted that this is a "highly emotive issue". But he urged jobseekers and policy-makers to accept that a competitive global labour market is a "fact of modern life".
"Migrant workers will continue to provide economic value to employers and our economy, but we must also better support young people entering the labour market," he added. "Our research shows that few employers see this as an either/or choice.”
