10/06/2026
Today UNISON is holding a day of action for . Our Black Members Officer, Deborah, tells us why we need to reform visas for migrant care workers..
Across the UK, thousands of migrant health and social care workers wake up every day and go to work caring for others. We support older people, people living with disabilities, people recovering from illness, and some of the most vulnerable members of our communities.
We do this work because we care. We do it with dedication, professionalism, and compassion. Many of us left behind families, careers, businesses, homes, and established lives to answer the call to work in a sector facing severe staff shortages.
Today, many migrant workers are facing the new challenge, uncertainty about our future.
The proposal to extend the pathway to settlement from five years to fifteen years has created significant concern among migrant workers across the country. For many of us, the five-year route was part of the plan we built our lives around when deciding to come to the UK, that was the promise given. Families made long-term decisions based on that understanding.
An additional ten years is not simply a number.
It means ten more years of uncertainty about our future.
It means ten more years of temporary status.
It means delaying plans to fully settle, invest, and build stable lives for our families.
It means extending the emotional and financial pressures that many migrant workers already experience while contributing to the UK's health and social care services.
At a time when the health and social care sector continues to face recruitment and retention challenges, workers need stability, not greater uncertainty.
This campaign is not about special treatment. It is about fairness.
We are asking policymakers to recognise the immense contribution migrant workers make every day and to ensure that policies support, rather than discourage, the workforce that helps keep health and social care services running.
We are also calling for fair pay within the health and social care sector and for reforms to the sponsorship system that protect workers from exploitation and create greater independence and security.
Our campaign events have demonstrated something powerful: when workers come together, our voices are stronger.
The large turnout of migrant care workers at lobbying events showed that people are ready to engage, speak up, and be part of the conversation about the future of our sector. It showed that this issue matters deeply to thousands of workers and their families.
The journey ahead may not be easy, but change has always been driven by people who refused to stay silent.
That is why I encourage every migrant health and social care worker to get involved. Attend campaign events. Stay informed. Speak to your colleagues. Share your experiences. Support one another.
Most importantly, stay united.
This campaign is bigger than any one individual. It is about all of us. It is about protecting the future of migrant workers, supporting our families, and ensuring that those who care for others are treated with fairness, dignity, and respect.
Together, our voices can be heard.
Together, we can make a difference.
Together, we can continue to stand for a fairer future for all migrant health and social care workers.
