The trade deal announced earlier this week (6 May) sparked headlines about how it will allow Indian workers to avoid paying national insurance contributions for up to three years while in the UK.
Reports suggest that people working under a new visa arrangement that the deal would allow, will only make social security payments in their home country when working in the UK.
Speaking to HR magazine, Rob Smedley, employment director at law firm Freeths, explained that employers need to be aware of managing the potential atmosphere if they seek to benefit from this deal.
He said: “Employers need to be wary of, and manage, wider discrimination risks such as how different nationalities are treated in terms of job opportunities and recruitment processes, plus, how certain nationalities might be treated by colleagues during employment because of perceived preferential treatment.”
Read more: Brexit trade agreement to impact wages and productivity
However, if this management is done effectively, according to Ashley Stothard, immigration executive at Freeths, the deal offers businesses an opportunity to address skills shortages, especially in sectors such as IT, engineering and healthcare.
Stothard added: “These sectors often struggle to source workers from the resident labour market and so often look overseas. The trade deal means that UK businesses can look first to India, and benefit from the cost savings in national insurance contributions.”
In order to benefit, Stothard suggested that HR professionals need to review their organisations' recruitment strategy.
Speaking to HR magazine, he said: “They should ensure that they’re up-to-date with immigration law and sponsor compliance, and prepare for an increase in overseas recruitment.”
Read more: National insurance cuts raise state pension question
Kate Palmer, employment services director at HR advisory Peninsula, added that businesses need to properly assess if the deal actually benefits their businesses.
She stated that, despite the obvious short-term cost benefits, there are other factors to consider, not least discrimination and the wider talent strategy.
Palmer told HR magazine: “If businesses solely look to recruit Indian workers on this basis, they may not only find they have missed out on the best candidate but could also be breaching discrimination laws.
“As with any recruitment process, the most suited candidate for a role should be the one who is successful.”
