A recent illegal working raid in Northern Ireland highlights the Home Office's continued focus in this area across the UK. It also provides the latest example of reputational damage to a business other than the direct employer, ahead of the Government taking steps to expand the reach of the civil penalty regime for illegal working.
On 19 March 2025 the Home Office arrested 36 individuals in a widely reported illegal working operation at a construction site within Belfast's Titanic Quarter. This coincided with the Home Office releasing statistics noting a 38% increase in illegal working visits and arrests under the current Government, in comparison with a similar period for the 12 months prior.
The operation is the latest example of how the Home Office uses the media to publicise its enforcement activity. As part of the reporting, general quotes on the Government's commitment to tackling illegal working were provided from both the Minister for Border Security and Asylum as well as the Immigration Compliance and Enforcement lead for Northern Ireland.
As one article observes, '(t)he Home Office did not name the construction project, site, subcontractor or any other detail of the raid that took place last week'. Yet, a well-known business is named in connection with the raid, without any suggestion it is a direct employer to which illegal working civil penalties or criminal sanctions may be applied.
The Government has signalled that it is now planning to go beyond reputational damage, announcing on 30 March 2025 that it intends to extend the illegal working civil penalty regime to businesses hiring gig economy and zero hours workers. Once implemented, businesses hiring self-employed contractors and other non-employed workers will be brought within the scope of receiving a civil penalty of up to £60,000 per worker if they fail to carry out satisfactory right to work checks.
All businesses should take seriously the risk of reputational damage, as well as the resourcing and other implications of broader right to work checks. Sectors considered 'high risk' by the Home Office should be especially cautious. These include construction, retail, hospitality, logistics, personal services and social care.
We shall provide further updates about the scope and operation of the new illegal working laws as more details become available. In the meantime, our experience shows that there is no 'one size fits all' approach for businesses to take to reduce their risk of reputational damage. It very much depends on the composition of their workforce and their arrangements with sub-contractors, agencies and other third parties who supply workers on business premises.
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