London, Europe Brief News – 4.5m Brits are considering moving overseas for a better quality of life, as a result of the cost of living crisis and for better career opportunities.
In fact, over 3.4m UK working adults say moving outside the UK is a long-term goal of theirs, while 3 per cent admit they are actively planning to relocate either in the next year or the next two years, that equates to an immediate exodus of over 380,000 UK workers.
The percentage of those looking to move abroad rises substantially among UK adults aged between 18-24 that are not in retirement (30 per cent), compared to 17 per cent of those aged 25-34, according to extensive research by Totaljobs.
The numbers are also particularly high among those living in London (23 per cent) indicating a potential talent drain for the capital.
When asked about the reasons for considering a move abroad, the top four reasons given were; a better quality of life (64 per cent), the cost of living in the UK (43 per cent), a desire to travel more (43 per cent), better career opportunities within their desired industry (20 per cent).
Hiring from abroad
Against this backdrop, half of businesses (52 per cent) have stated that they are planning to hire from outside of the UK within the next year. Almost a third have already increased their overseas hiring since Covid, so since March 2020.
However, the research highlights the various challenges businesses are facing when it comes to international hiring.
The first main challenges lie with practicalities and logistics of global hiring, with 39 per cent stating that Visa flexibility and availability was an issue; almost a quarter of businesses have gone so far as to call on the government to ease visa restrictions when it comes to hiring.
