Should Polish people be allowed to live in Britain.......?

Question

Do you think that the 300,000 Poles which have currently moved to Britain have taken Jobs which should have been given to Britidh people and pushed the wages in thousands of jobs down to the minimum wage and do you think they have also taken rooms and accomodation and housing in general in a market which was originally overstretched.

To MIckey:- Dogs.

Answer 1

Just as a quick query to your figures, actually as poles are now part of the E.U, they move here freely and work here freely on a European Passport. This makes it extremely difficult to keep any ideas on how many there are actually enterring the U.K, 300 000 is a very very conservative estimate I think the figure is actually more around the 1.5 million mark as I read in the Daily Express last Friday that they have now overtaken the Irish as the largest migrant workforce in the U.K.

On the matter of the question, I have nothing against polish people per se and I do think that they should be allowed the same rights as every other member state in the E.U, however....

I work in a factory which made 'redundant' two thirds of it's English staff and then not three months later replaced them with polish workers on around 40% less salary. Since then the director has changed policy so that we now have a clocking in/out system with docked wages if you are late, increased the working week and changed the starting salary so it is now only attractive to people from the eastern block (If you speak to these people they will tell you that, even on our minimum wage, they can earn as much in a week as they would in a month in poland) and my employer even privately admits that he will only take on migrant workers. As a result English workers now make up only five per cent of the work force!!!!

I am not going to disclose my employer but I work in a semi skilled industry and the effect that polish migrant workers has had on my life is really not good, yet I do not blame the polish people themselves; they are merely trying to create a better life for themselves and their families as I am sure I would if roles were reversed. I blame the top level government, they should have foresaw these effects and legislated to alleviate them, lets face it how hard would it be to introduce european wide legislation guaranteeing people a minimum value of earnings when they can find time to discuss whether builders should be forced to wear shirts in hot weather. I think the government has been very canny in allowing this as it should have been up to businesses to make jobs more attractive to existing workers if there was a shortage (It's called supply an demand - If there's a short supply of something it should become more valuable) again where there are more workers in the market place than jobs you see wage rates and remuneration packages plummet, as is happening now. It should not be for the government to interfere in this way, by doing so they are betraying the people of our country and taking advantage of migrant workers. The worst thing about all of this is that the government is now scratching their heads trying to figure out why U.K unemployment is now at the highest level we have seen in recent times!!!!

As for housing, you will normally find that they share houses to split the cost of living here; so there is more to send home. So in this sense I don't think that we can blame poles for housing shortages.

As a final thought though, if you think we have it bad now, just wait until romania joins the E.U!!!

Answer 2

Whilst all the Polish people that I have met have had work ethics second to none and have always been courteous, I do have reservations about immigration on the current scales. (I think prior to the 1990s there was not a problem and immigration was manageable) Lots of people have said that the Polish are doing the jobs that Brits dont want to do, however this probably wont last for long, I would say that in a few years, if not now they will be moving up the career ladder and putting British young people out of jobs. I think recent mass immigration has also pushed up house prices (whether buying or renting due to demand being high) however I'm no economist and I guess that most immigrants dont buy, but it all has a bearing on the situation. In addition immigration is meant to solve the impending pensions crisis. How will it do that if lots of immigrants decide to stay and claim a pension (By the way I am not necessarily talking about the Poles when I say that)? We will then be in a situation where we will have to get more young migrants to pay for the pension gap, or we will have to work till we drop dead. I think it is a false economy and the British govt has made a foolish mistake allowing immigration on this scale. People in Britain are not that rich its all built on shaky ground. I think that Britain has a population which is as densley populated (or nearly) as China and India, and we have no or barely any oil left, not enough room to grow enough food to feed the population (should it be required) and we are a trillion £s in debt. Another point is that migration sometimes acts as a 'brain drain' on the country of origin. If the British govenment wants to help, then we should invest in these countries and help them there, not everyone can live in Britain. One more point. In Britain there are many elderly people living in poverty. I was horrified to hear about the amount of old people that die each year in the UK due to the cold and not being able to afford to have the heating on /or even have central heating. We need to get our priorities right as a nation and look after our own first. I am not saying that we should not help people from other countries, but our elderly people deserve some recompense for their efforts, after all this country is built on their efforts.

Answer 3

The real question is: "Should the British be allowed a say as to who moves into their country?"
No government, Labour OR Tory has ever allowed immigration to become an election issue; ever! Choosing between them is like trying to decide between Tweedledee and Tweedledum.
Since the British have never been allowed this right it follows that no immigrants have any actual RIGHT to be here - they simply are.
When the BNP (or whoever) take power (and they will sooner or later) then their expulsion will follow. There will be no argument. It will simply be the pendulum swinging the other way.
Don't believe me? Stay around and watch!!

Answer 4

My experience with EU workers has been nothing but positive. They are reliable and hardworking, in stark contrast with some lazy and unaspirational British school leavers. If some unscrupulous companies are working them at/below the minimum wage, it is those companies we should be questioning.

There is a good amount of good-for-nothing British who are happy to live their life on the dole, but any Brit worth their salt should not feel threatened by a few EU workers.

Answer 5

They should be able to live anywere, if they fill up the jobs that british people wont do or if they are better qualified.But against the same wages,not for minimumwage.The only solution i think is that you have to put the minimumwage higher so that the British fill the unwanted jobs .

Answer 6

If British people don't want the jobs because the pay is so low then why shouldn't people from a fellow EU country have them. Freedom of movement applies here to the best of my knowledge.

Answer 7

Hey I'm only 1/16 th pole and I'm an American but I'll be D amned if I don't think everyone has equal rights and liberites. With the expection of the people who are sick freaks (murders, child molesters...etc)

Answer 8

Shoot, send half of them to us. We have the oldest Polish church and one of the oldest Polish settlements in the US not far from where I live. 300,000 is about half the number of illegal Mexicans that move here, each year.

Hell, send them all.

Answer 9

You're out of luck on that one ... Poland is now in the EU, which means with the free flow of workers, goods and services, they are allowed to come and go as they please within the EU ... that means you, as a British citizen, is allowed to go to Poland if you like .... :) Likelihood is though that you'll see more Poles coming to Britain than Brits going to Poland ...

The same thing will happen here if our government is going through with their spp program ... Mexicans and Canadians will be able to come and settle here at will ... I say we stop it while we still can .... :(

Answer 10

Believe it or not, America also has a problem with illegal POLISH immigration. Everyone keeps pointing the finger at Mexicans but Polish are just as bad with relation to their immigrating illegally.