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Benefits December 21, 2009
Foreign Workers Good for Business
December 21, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – World business leaders say that hiring foreign workers continues to be good for business and the economy, according to a survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit on behalf of Western Union.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
A press release said more than three in four corporate
leaders surveyed (76%) say that foreign workers have a positive impact on the economy
and nearly as many (71%) agree that foreign workers provide competitive advantages.
Further, more than half (57%) say that the recession has not prompted changes
to the hiring practices of foreign workers.
According to the press release, contrary to perceptions that more stringent immigration regulations will safeguard jobs for local candidates and boost local economies, global business leaders overwhelmingly believe that the world’s mobile workforce meets critical employment needs.
Eight out of 10
executive respondents report hiring foreign workers because they have the
skills to fill specific staffing needs (79%) and enhance the skills of the full
workforce (81%). Seventy-one percent report that as part of the workforce,
foreign workers aid the ability of companies to compete in a global market
where international operators are also vying to provide those products and
services.
Nearly nine in 10 survey respondents (88%) indicate that
there are one or more significant challenges to hiring foreign workers. More
than one in four (27%) report that current regulations make it difficult to
hire a sufficient number of foreign workers; while two in five (40%) say it is
difficult to hire foreign workers for low-skilled jobs. The limited number of quotas/visas
is cited as one of the most significant challenges to employing the mobile workforce,
followed by a process that is too complicated and costly.
“While businesses clearly see the benefits of an
open labor market, very few of them are actually involved in advocating
publicly for it,” said Hikmet Ersek, Western Union chief operating
officer-designate, in the announcement.
Worldwide, only 15% of executives say they have asked
their government for more open immigration employment laws. According to the
survey, fewer than one in 10 (8%) are advocating for migration processes or
programs under their own company name.
Survey respondents included 501 global business leaders,
of which 43% were C-level executives.
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