Brexit and pandemic onslaught have altered UK workforce with highest-ever number of non-EU workers
UK, EU and non-EU payroll data varied drastically during the course of the pandemic, according to fresh data sent to Morning Wire this morning.
While the UK entered the first lockdown in March 2020 with payroll numbers at 25.7m that then dropped to 24.9m by March 2021, non-EU payroll saw figures at 2.12m in March 2020, steadily growing to 2.14m by March 2021.
Whilst native UK workers saw a significant decline in payroll numbers, and non-EU experienced growth, EU workers saw the highest month on month decline, experiencing a drop of -1.62 per cent in August 2020 compared to the UK’s decrease of 0.45 per cent in the same month, according to the data from payroll advisory Staffology.
Brexit
The UK’s exit from the EU has also affected decisions to work in the UK, which may give reason to the UK’s drastic difference in payroll.
When Brexit finally happened in January 2020, the UK’s payroll number was at 25.7m,
Seeing a consistent decline from this point until April 2021, the data shows that the advent of both Brexit and coronavirus meant the UK’s job market was hit hardest compared to its counterparts.
Unlike UK workers, non-EU workers have the highest rates of self-employment and business ownership globally, meaning they were not relying on major businesses to survive in order to work.
UK, EU and non-EU quarterly change from May 20 to May 21
| UK | EU | Non-EU | |
| May 2020 – July 2020 | -0.02% | -0.02% | +0.28% |
| August 2020 – October 2020 | -0.24% | -0.69% | +0.39% |
| November 2020 – January 2021 | -0.30% | -0.91% | +0.05% |
| February 2021 – April 2021 | +0.40% | +0.45% | +0.81% |
Discussing the figures with Morning Wire, expert technical payroll writer Caine Bird said: “Coronavirus and Brexit has created uncertainty in the job market for many years now, something that workers and businesses alike have been forced to adapt to.”
She pointed out that “payroll data from the UK, EU and Non-EU provides us with valuable information on how payroll has differed between them in light of these events.”
Since July 2014, non-EU workers have seen a continuous rise in payroll.