One-in-ten East Mids firms to be ‘extremely exposed’ to staff shortages, post-Brexit

Nearly one in ten firms in the East Midlands believe they will be “extremely exposed” to staff shortages in a post-Brexit world, a new survey has found.

A look at the mid-stage findings of the East Midlands Chamber’s second Quarterly Economic Survey of 2018, sponsored by the University of Leicester School of Business, revealed that 66.7% of respondents expected staffing difficulties post-Brexit.

Of those identifying a risk, 8.5% said they were “extremely exposed”, 21.8% said they would be “somewhat exposed” and 36.4% said they would be “a little exposed”.

Chris Hobson, director of policy at East Midlands Chamber, said: “The survey still has nearly a week to run, but these early results are confirming what our members have been telling us since the referendum, which is that retaining a suitably experienced and qualified workforce post-Brexit is a major concern.

“It is vital that East Midlands companies have access to the workers they need after the UK leaves the EU to ensure the region can continue to be a respected player and global leader in, for example, advanced technologies.

“Without access to the right workforce we could quickly fall behind global competitors, which would ultimately damage the UK economy and our reputation on the world stage.”