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Money Box Live: Migrant workers in the UK

With uncertainty over Brexit and a weak pound, is it financially worth coming to the UK to work? Do the economics add up or are overseas visitors better off finding jobs at home?

Is it financially worthwhile coming to the UK to work? With uncertainty over Brexit, the weak pound and improving economies in many other countries, do the sums add up or are overseas workers better off staying at home to get a job?

Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show a record annual drop in the number of EU citizens working in Britain, especially from Poland and other eastern European states that joined the EU in 2004. Many have decided to leave the UK and return to their home country where their money stretches further. But there's been a rise in the number coming to the UK from Romania and Bulgaria - as well as from countries outside the EU.

So how do UK wages, cost of travel, accommodation and food prices compare with elsewhere and what other money factors determine whether working in the UK is an attractive prospect? Visa fees, English language tests and the health surcharge for those coming from outside the EU can cost thousands of pounds. Louise Cooper hears the stories of migrant workers from Romania, Brazil, India and Italy who've come to the UK for employment.

Guests:
Madeleine Sumption, Director, Migration Observatory

Barbara Drozdowicz, CEO, East European Resource Centre

Presenter: Louise Cooper
Producer: Sally Abrahams.

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30 minutes

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  • Wed 5 Sep 2018 15:00

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