The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) has commissioned the first piece of comprehensive research to identify the skills of migrant workers in the East of England. The study by the Working Lives Institute at London Metropolitan University aims to find out the scale, geography and the characteristics of the current migrant workers in the region. The research is believed to be the first of its kind as it aims to detail the skill base of migrant workers within the region.
Judith Barker, Head of Environment and Community Development at EEDA, said: “For years there has been no clear picture of the skills and the number of migrant workers in the East of England. We intend this study to discover how these workers can and do assist with the development of the regional economy. The research will lead to a better and more coherent understanding of where and how migrant workers can make a positive contribution to the local economy. This is why a number of organisations have been invited to join the steering group overseeing this research to fully understand and build upon the results of the survey. These outcomes will be shared with employers to help them to target individuals with the skills they need in order to ensure continued economic growth in the East of England.”
The steering group consists of representatives from: EEDA, EERA, Home Office, SERTUC, employers, community and voluntary organisations working with migrant workers.
We have undertaken a literature review of migrant workers in East England and are now conducting interviews and this survey of employers in the region. We are therefore approaching you as an employer in the East of England and hope that you will be able to contribute to the project by completing this survey.
The survey is designed to be very straightforward and it should not take you more than 20 minutes to complete it. If you were sent an electronic copy, please return it by E-mail or print off copies to return it by post. If you were sent a hard copy, please post the completed survey back to us. Please feel free to forward the survey to other employers of migrant workers in the East of England.
We would be grateful if you could please return completed surveys by no later than the 20th of January 2005.
Thank you very much for your cooperation.
Dr Andrea Winkelmann-Gleed
Research Fellow
Working Lives Research Institute
London Metropolitan University
166-220 Holloway Road
London N7 8DB
Direct: 020 7133 3149
A.Winkelmann-gleed@londonmet.ac.uk
