The UK games industry is struggling with Brexit
Colin Campbell
Tuesday 22nd February 2022
The UK games development industry is suffering from a labour shortage. Partly driven by the pandemic and a surge in demand for games, this shortage -- and its attendant inflation in salaries -- has been exacerbated by the implementation of Brexit, which has added significant expense and time-investment to hiring talent from Britain's neighbors in the European Union.
"We have over 300 jobs advertised live on our website right now, and another 300 waiting in the pipeline," says Simon Hope, recruitment director at employment agency Aardvark Swift. "It's crazy, really crazy. Ultimately, there's only so many people to go around."
Hope says that prior to Brexit, around 20% of his placements in the UK came direct from the UK. That number has now dropped to 5%, mainly due to a reluctance among EU nationals to move to a country that is now outside the UK. In the past two years, an estimated 200,000 EU nationals have left Britain to return to the continent.
Simon Hope, Aardvark Swift
Most of Aardvark Swift's clients are UK-based game studios and publishers. Prior to Brexit, hiring an EU employee required minimal paperwork. Now, companies must sponsor each potential employee from the EU, apply for visas, and pay expensive healthcare surcharges ("high four figures, and that's before family members," says Hope) which previously existed only at a nominal level. Employers must prove that they have made a valid attempt to seek out applications from UK citizens.
Hope estimates that the entire process can now take three-to-four months. Little wonder that potential applicants prefer to take jobs inside the EU.
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