Members of PAWA recently attended a one-day workshop on migration, workers’ rights, and collective justice, organised by Migrant Action in Leeds. The event explored key issues affecting migrant workers, including how visa sponsorship can perpetuate state-enabled exploitation.

Fizza Quaresh from the Migrants Rights Network emphasised that the crisis faced by sponsored workers in Britain is not accidental but the result of deliberate systemic design. Luke Piper, Head of Immigration at The Work Rights Centre, delivered a keynote speech outlining how his organization is addressing the Health and Care Worker visa crisis.

Government representatives were also present at the workshop. Richard Nicholson, Strategic Lead for Yorkshire and Humber, discussed a DHSC-funded project aimed at helping displaced care workers transition into stable new roles. He also shared insights into how this initiative is perceived from the perspective of service users.

Following the workshop, PAWA established a strategic connection with Richard and his team to support workers who find themselves stranded due to the cancellation of their sponsor’s license.

Additionally, PAWA collaborated with ACORN, the union, to lead a workshop that explained how union organising differs from the support typically offered by charities. Guruuswa, PAWA’s General Secretary, reiterated that the issue of visas and migrant hyper-exploitation is not just a charity concern but a working-class issue. She highlighted that as long as migrant workers remain unfree, British workers are also not free, as the primary aim of exploitative migration policies is to drive down wages across the board.