Malayalee agents continue to influence some care home recruitment in UK, say reports

By A Staff Reporter

LONDON April 6: Reports suggest that Malayalee agents still hold sway over recruitment processes in some UK care homes. Displaced migrant healthcare workers have reportedly approached these agents to secure Certificates of Sponsorship (COS) to obtain employment in certain care homes.

In a related incident, a healthcare worker was “partially suspended” from her care home for allegedly “sleeping in a chair” during a break. She was informed that her partial suspension could escalate to full-time suspension if she fails to meet new job conditions outlined in her conditional letter.

The worker, who secured her position directly without utilizing the services of an agent, has become a target of a Malayalee agent known for being the main provider of healthcare workers to the care home. Her unconventional route of securing employment reportedly displeased the agent, leading to her current predicament.

The victim sought assistance from Unison, a public service union. Her initial Unison representative provided helpful support, but their departure and replacement by an unhelpful and unsupportive representative left her seeking alternative advice. As a result, she must now consult a specialist immigration solicitor, incurring significant costs.

In a separate incident last week, a displaced care worker claimed to have been defrauded by a Malayalee agent who promised to secure them a job in a UK care home in exchange for £25,000. This case further highlights the ongoing influence of Malayalee agents over certain care homes and their illegal sale of Certificates of Sponsorship to vulnerable migrant workers.

The victim, desperate for stable employment, reportedly fell prey to the agent’s deceptive tactics, losing a substantial amount of money in the process. This alarming incident underscores the need for stronger protections and ethical recruitment practices within the UK care sector.

Stakeholders and authorities must take immediate action to address the exploitation of displaced workers by these unscrupulous agents, ensuring a fair and transparent job placement system for all.

The healthcare worker has been advised to report the care home and agent to the Home Office and apply to regional hubs to find an alternative sponsor. Relevant hub information is provided below.

Are you on a Health and Care Worker visa in the UK and have been affected by your employer’s sponsor licence being revoked? Then there is help. The government is encouraging all international healthcare workers who have been affected by a revocation to contact their regional partnership using the details below.

Regional support available
If your sponsor has had their licence revoked, support is available in your local region to help you find new employment in the care sector.

This support can include:
advice and guidance – help with understanding your visa status and employment rights
employment support – support in finding a new employer who can sponsor your visa
help with accessing financial support if you are struggling due to job loss or unpaid wages
mental health and wellbeing support such as buddying schemes and help to access counselling

Who can access support
Support is available to international care workers or senior care workers in England on the Health and Care Worker visa, whose employers have had their sponsor licence revoked. Other care workers or senior care workers in England on the Health and Care Worker visa who want to find alternative employment in care can access support, but those impacted by sponsor licence revocation are currently being prioritised by regional partnerships.
Note: this applies to England only, as adult social care is a devolved matter. If you live in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, you should refer to information from the relevant devolved administration.

How to access support
You must email the regional partnership in the area where you live. Contact details can be found in the table below.

Your email should include:
your name
the address you are currently living at
your contact details
the name of the provider sponsoring your visa
It is important that your regional contact has the correct information about you so that they can provide the best possible support without delay.

Contact your regional partnership
If you’re unsure who to contact, use the table below to identify your region based on your county or area.

Table 1: regional partnerships – who to contact if you’re a displaced international worker

Cheshire and Merseyside Cheshire East: Cheshire West, Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool City, Sefton, St Helens, Warrington, Wirral Email: cminternationalrecru@warrington.gov.uk

East Midlands: Derby City, Derbyshire, Leicester and Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, North Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Nottingham, Rutland, West Northamptonshire: Email: recruitsupport@eastmidscare.co.uk

East of England: Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Luton, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Southend, Suffolk, Thurrock, Milton Keynes, Norfolk, Peterborough: Click to See list of contacts across the east of England 

Greater Manchester: Bolton, Bury, Greater Manchester, Manchester City, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan: Email: nhsgm.gmadviceandsupport@nhs.net

Lancashire and Cumbria: Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Lancashire, Westmorland and Furness: Email: irsupport@lancashire.gov.uk

London North Central: Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey, Islington: Email: london.internationalrecruits@camden.gov.uk

London North East: Barking and Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets, Hackney, City of London: Email: NEL.IRSupport@havering.gov.uk or london.internationalrecruits@camden.gov.uk

London North West: Brent, Ealing, Hammersmith and Fulham, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster Click Here to View Contacts

London South East: Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Lambeth, Lewisham, Southwark Email: london.internationalrecruits@camden.gov.uk

London South West: Croydon, Kingston, Merton, Richmond, Sutton, Wandsworth: Email: london.internationalrecruits@camden.gov.uk

North East England: Cumberland, Darlington, Gateshead, Durham County Council, Hartlepool, Middlesborough, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, Redcar and Cleveland, South Tyneside, Stockton, Sunderland: Email: sponsored.support@durham.gov.uk

South East England: Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Medway, Oxfordshire, Portsmouth, Reading, Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Slough, Southampton, Surrey, West Berkshire, West Sussex, Wokingham: Email: workforce@sesca.org.uk

South West England: Bath and North-east Somerset, Bournemouth, Bristol, Christchurch and Poole, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Isles of Scilly, North Somerset, Plymouth, Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon, Torbay, Wiltshire: Email: commissioning.swadass@swcouncils.gov.uk

West Midlands: Birmingham, City of Wolverhampton, Coventry, Dudley, Herefordshire, Sandwell, Shropshire, Solihull, Staffordshire, Stoke on Trent, Telford and Wrekin, Walsall, Warwickshire, Worcestershire: Email: info@revoked.support

Yorkshire and Humber: Barnsley, Bradford, Calderdale, City of York, Doncaster, East Riding of York, Kingston upon Hull, Kirklees, Leeds, North Lincolnshire, North Yorkshire, North-east Lincolnshire, Rotherham, Sheffield, Wakefield: Email: international.recruitment@adassyh.org.uk