Supporting migrant workers UNISON guide | Page 3

Contents
Foreword 3 Acknowledgements 4
1. Introduction 5
A growing and vital workforce – with fewer rights
5
Exploitation in health and social care
7
A union vision for change
8
2. Getting here: visas and the sponsorship system 9
The visa sponsorship model
9
Abuse built into the system
12
The journey to the UK for health and social care workers
14
3. Building trust and understanding with migrant workers 16
The migrant experience: unique pressures and vulnerabilities
16
The complexity of migrant workers’ cases
17
Things to consider before supporting migrant workers
17
Building community
21
4. Handling casework 23
Casework can be challenging – for the member and the union
23
Turning casework into organising opportunities
25
5. Basic employment rights 26
What rights should a migrant worker be able to exercise?
26
What are common signs that rights are being denied?
27
6. Unfair dismissal and loss of sponsorship 29
The legal framework
29
Employment law and the two-year rule
30
How to approach it as a rep or caseworker
31
Making a claim: what reps need to know
32
7. The consequences of dismissal: when a worker loses sponsorship 34
Rematching scheme for displaced care workers
35
Practical guidance for union reps and caseworkers
40
8. Working time 42
The legal framework
42
Practical guidance and tools
44
LRD • Supporting migrant workers 1