UKHospitality has warned that restricting the number of migrant workers into the UK will severely impact the hospitality sector.
The warning follows the publication of figures by HR body CIPD that show the number of non-UK-born workers in the UK decreased by 58,000 between April to June last year and the same period this year.
UKHospitality Chief Executive Kate Nicholls said: “The figures released by CIPD make alarming reading for hospitality businesses. With unemployment relatively low, businesses need to recruit from outside the UK to augment their home-grown teams and continue to grow.
“We have already voiced our concerns about the ability of employers to recruit post-Brexit, but the worrying reality is that numbers of non-UK workers are dwindling, and we haven’t even left the EU yet.
“If the talent pool continues to shrink, then businesses will be unable to invest and grow their businesses.
“Even more concerning for hospitality businesses is the Government’s intention to implement an immigration policy that favours higher-skilled technical jobs at the expense of others. Restricting potential applicants into the hospitality sector further, when the number of non-UK born workers is already shrinking, will be a disaster for the sector.”