to come to UK?

[whitney85]

So lately I wonder whether to come to UK. I'm from Poland. Live in a big city, have a job I like. I'm a mother of 2. My husband works too. We have 3 badroom apt, 2 cars and live a pretty stable life. On the other hand I want something more. I need a new experience. I'd like to live in a country wwith more opportunities. Before the kids we lived for a while in US, where we worked and traveled. We speak english but it's not as good as I wish. Not yet. I'm about 30 and it's been almost 6 years I haven't used the language. But anyway, I would like to make a change and go to UK. But I'm scared a little too. I was in London and Oxford once, I liked it there. But being a turist is way different than trying to settle down.
And finally I go to the point. Do you think its resonable? What do you think about so many immigrants in UK? Do you even want us there? A tough question I know. But I need to know how it really looks like before I make a final decision. Its not only about me. I don't want my children to feel any worse.So pleasy give me an answer and help me make my mind couse I don't know what I should do...

The funny thing that most UK people don't realise is that most immigrants coming over don't understand the benefits system. It's not even a consideration for them. They come to work and make a better life for themselves and their family. So it makes me laugh when the Daily Mail et al make it sound like they all rock up looking for a house & benefits.

My wife is from Latvia and came over to the UK seeking a better life nearly 9 years ago now. Her sister is also here as are a couple of her cousins.

Through my work I've also regularly visited Krakow and work regularly with the Poles there so I've some experience of Poland.

What I would say is that if you come over then initially you will have to start off working at the bottom. Your qualifications (whatever they are) won't mean anything here. One of my wife's cousin is a engineering graduate but started off working graveyard shifts at Morrisons warehouse.

But if you are intelligent and willing to work damn hard to work & study then life will get better. He now is qualified as an electrician and has found a much better job earning much better money.

Same for my wife. She started off working shifts in factories doing the menial jobs that our local population don't want to do whilst claiming there are no jobs.

Now she's a manager for a company that sends carers into the community and she regularly pulls her hair out at how hard it is to find reliable people.

My wife's family who are here will all agree that the standard of living here is much better now than back 'home'. Working hours aren't anywhere near as long as Poland. I've seen the hours my Polish colleagues work and they can keep them.

That said and done....you currently have a fairly good standard of living in Poland. So I think you need to decide based on your future prospects in Poland and whether or not you are willing to start from the bottom again at the age of 30 with kids in tow in the UK.

Only you can decide that.

For all of the faux positive messages on here, a recent YouGov poll found that 70% of British people say No to more immigrants.

I don't even think highly skilled people should be allowed in. We have a problem of high unemployment of British young people so they need to be trained to fill the highly skilled roles.

Sorry OP but the statistic wasn't made up.

Why are the positive messages faux?

The simple truth is that we actually need MORE immigration, not less if we want the economy to grow. The problem is that we need that to happen outside of the SE where most people seem to go.

We've not got a high unemployment issue at all. In fact haven't we got one of the lowest in Europe now?

What we do have though is a large unskilled population who are unable to get better jobs and an even larger population who are happy to live off benefits whilst claiming there are no jobs.

My neighbour's son is 19, dropped out of college. Sat around for months claiming he was looking for an apprenticeship. Eventually with the proper motivation he actually REALLY started looking. Inside 48 hours he had three interviews lined up.

Both my daughter's friends who are 18 have managed to find p/t jobs working at Mcdonalds.

My wife's company is desperate for people who are reliable and WANT to work. Unfortunately too many people aren't really interested. They've a constant stream of people who just apply because the job centre made them. Or as soon as they start the excuses come trotting out from child care to cat allergies. All they want is someone decent to turn up, not expect to cherry pick the hours and the ability to wear two shoes to an interview would really help (true story).

All too often "There are no jobs" actually means "There are no jobs I want to do"

We were grateful enough to our Polish allies during WW2, people have short memories.

I don't even think highly skilled people should be allowed in. We have a problem of high unemployment of British young people so they need to be trained to fill the highly skilled roles.

You can't just train people to do highly skilled jobs. Someone who left school with no qualifications isn't going to be a doctor after a bit of training.

We do not need any more unskilled workers. Unemployment is the lowest it has ever been for the under 25s and you can not say unrestricted immigration from the EU has nothing to do with it. Wages have also been driven down and again you cannot say that has nothing to do with immigration.

I expect soon we will not even be in the EU so if I was you OP I would come in the next two years as unless you are a skilled worker the door will be closed on you.

You can't just train people to do highly skilled jobs. Someone who left school with no qualifications isn't going to be a doctor after a bit of training.

Yes - I do know this but we've had a shortage of doctors etc for years so with a bit of forward planning this could have been addressed a decade ago.

Immigration is out of control. I hate to think how much the government spends on translators. They are everywhere, at the council office, doctor's surgery, hospitals and benefit office.
Come here if you have a specific job where Britain has a skill shortage.
There really is very little work and I speak from experience.

Immigration is out of control. YY to this.

Only allow people in that have a specific skill that we need and even then, for a set period of time. No benefits for immigrants and they need to prove they have at least £20k in funding in case they need any healthcare. Harsh I know but that would send out a clear message that the UK is full up.

Op I think, bearing in mind your qualifications, your first post of call is how would you transfer your qualifications overso that they can be used in england. Also what you will need to do in order to register with the General Medical Council, i.e. official translations of documents etc. You will likley be able to get a job in mental helth. Are you a clinicalpsychologist? What sort are you? Do you specialise in a certain type of mental health.
Once you have looked at this i woukd suggest you sign up to a Soecialist medical recruitment agency.
The other thing i woukd suggest is that you have a good pot of savings to cover your initial settlement into the uk and for any periods of unemployment. Finally research schools some are fantastic some are awful.

As the OP has pointed out, she is in fact highly skilled.
Hopefully we will not be out of the EU in the next few years, we need it. We are no longer an Empire (thank goodness) we are a piddling little island with not much in the way of manufacturing etc (thank you Thatcher) and we need all the help we can get.

Specialist medical recruitment agency .

I am guessing all the pro-immigration posters haven't seen their pay impacted by mass immigration?

I agree that if you were to come to the UK, you probably would find yourself working well below your qualifications, skills and abilities.

We really do need psychologists in the UK, but the fact is that the NHS has been paring staff down to the bone in recent years. They aren't always replacing doctors/surgeons etc when they retire. So it could be you could work as an agency mental health nurse or carer etc. I could be wrong, but the chances of working in your present job over here are going to be small.

Would caution against living in London. It's not that it's too big, it's just too expensive unless you have a pretty good income/s coming in. Travel by tube/train/bus is expensive and rents and general cost of living too.

In terms of will people be welcoming. I would be, but then I'm from an immigrant background myself being 2nd generation British. Government statistics seem to indicate that many UK residents feel immigration is out of control and that our key services - health, education, housing - are struggling to meet the demand on them.

Definitely look at all your options and what jobs you are likely to be able to apply for and get and what accommodation you would be able to afford etc before deciding. Good luck, whatever you do.

Unemployment is a lot higher here than the statistics suggest.
A lot on immigrants have opted for the working tax credit route rather than being on benefits. They only need earn a few quid a week to qualify. This is a big problem for our economy. Also people working less than 16 hours a week those on training schemes and sickness benefits are not shown in these figures.
I know the problem is much worse in some other European countries but immigration of this scale really impacts on our economy.
Most of my neighbours are 2nd, 3rd, 4th generation immigrants and even they have said enough is enough.

Op you say that you would have enough money to live on for 3-6 months in the UK. Is this just for you or the four of you? Have you taken into consideration that for all of you, rent alone will be average £1000 a month. Plus council tax, which caries depending on value of property, utilities which are expensive. Food which can be expensive.
Do you intend to drive - insurance, tax etc never mind petrol. Have an older car and it costs more.
If you wont be driving, public transport in some areas is very expensive.
If you have enough to spend average of 2k+ a month then you do have a better life in Poland, where you also have two cars.
Oh and disregard the mentions of becoming a TA. There are few jobs in this area, schools can be extremely picky because lots of people apply and the wages can be less than 10k a year, which is not enough to live on.
Instead look at what you are both qualified for

Whitney - As Pancakes above said, do check with some UK medical agencies what you would need to do.
My father in law needed to have all of his Degree's and official paperwork translated by a certified company in to English so that he could register with the General Medical Council before practising here. His qualifications stood exactly as they did in Poland and he certainly didn't need to start at the bottom of anywhere.
It's worth looking into.

I don't even think highly skilled people should be allowed in
I don't get that as sometimes their skills are invaluable.
My foreign Fil is one of the most experienced Doctors in the UK, in his specialisation working within the NHS.

Rebecca, why don't you head over to Poland to find out for yourself? Who knows, maybe you will stay there

Zapraszam do Anglii! Mieszkalam w Warszawie 25 lat temu. Ale nie pamietam bardzo dobrze jezyka polskiego. Przepraszam.

I would echo what CarbeDiem has said - look into how your qualifications would transfer here. It's not the land of milk and honey - I have a relative from Eastern Europe who is working resentfully in a factory as he can't get a job in his profession here (to be frank, his English really isn't good enough, and isn't going to improve when he's in a factory). If you are going to come over here and end up doing menial jobs, frankly, I wouldn't bother - your standard of living is never going to be as good as your life in Poland.

To all of those bleating about people not being allowed in to "take our jobs" - I have friends here who run hotels and restaurants (not in the SE) and they can't get any local people to work for them as cleaners. Their experience is that the indigenous population would rather be on the dole than have to get up and into work for 8.30. One has given up trying to find anyone, and does it all herself, and the other has employed two Polish girls who turn up every day, on time, and cycle 5 miles to get there. And she's not paying minimum wage either.

It is easy to be welcoming to, and tolerant of others, if you have a well paid job, good housing and access to good schools and healthcare. This probably applies to many of the posters here. Much more difficult if this doesn't apply to you and you are struggling to find your way in life and feel that access to essential services, education health and housing is being affected

Immigration and working tax credits have driven down real wages IMO and for those who are born here(including 2nd generation immigrants) who have to function fully in the UK economy this is a real problem. I am aware of many Poles who send money home or return with savings that greatly improves their situation in their home country. I am not blaming them for this but I also understand how those who are struggling here feel resentment.

Regarding trained staff in the healthcare sector-for years the NHS has restricted training places preferring to take the cheaper and easier way out and recruit from abroad. This is very unfair on our young people, I have worked with excellent students who have found it impossible to obtain a place on degrees in medical, nursing, physiotherapy etc through shortage of places.

OP. I would say that the debate has been quite polarised on this thread but any reasoned argument will highlight that there are strains on the system at the moment due to high levels of immigration over recent years and that if you come to the UK you should be aware of this before you come.

Best wishes whatever decision you make.

but any reasoned argument will highlight that there are strains on the system at the moment due to high levels of immigration over recent years and that if you come to the UK you should be aware of this before you come.
Alternatively, any argument that the poster above considers reasoned.

mrsSha why on earth is your friend not paying minimum wage??? It's just disgraceful and unhappy if this is the way your friend treats her employees I'm not surprised she can't find anyone.

I think mrs sch meant her friend was paying more than MW. (I hope anyway)

A lot of Poles are going to Canada as there really is a labour shortage over there.

Apple Sorry if I've taken what you said, in your first paragraph, out of context but immigrants can not be held responsible for UK people not having well paid jobs etc. If people are not educated to a level where they can command higher wages instead of low paid jobs, how can someone else possibly be blamed.

I also don't get the argument about what people do with their money. They all pay into our tax system, pay NIN, obviously have to buy shopping, pay bills and whatever else they do while actually living here = quite a lot into UK economy. It's no one elses business really what they do with the rest of their money, whether that be stick under their pillow or send some home for relatives. I can only speak for Poland but their basic pension is somewhat abysmal and not really proportionate to living costs. Seriously what would people rather - Pawel in London sends Grandma £200 monthly back to Poland to make her life a little more comfortable or Pawel brings Grandma here to live with his family.

I also took MrsSchad to mean her friend pays more than min wage.