With the announcement that Boris Johnson will be the next Prime Minister, workforce management expert Quinyx has warned of the problems the UK workforce faces with an inevitable hard Brexit in sight, and how offering greater flexible working is vital for employers in overcoming potential staff shortages. Contributor Erik Fjellborg, CEO – Quinyx. 

With Boris Johnson confirmed as the UK’s new prime minister, the likelihood of the UK facing a hard Brexit has increased. This has implications for people managers and HR directors in a number of areas, including access to workers. 

Quinyx research has shown that, through blue-collar job shortages alone, a hard Brexit could cost the UK economy £22 billion a year by 2024, equating to a 70 percent reduction in economic output from the UK’s manual and service role workers.

To weather the economic challenges that could come with a hard Brexit, it is important that employers are now looking at new and creative ways to secure and retain their workforce. A key way of doing this is offering greater flexibility – something that is on the rise in the UK, but 73 percent of UK workers still face issues with in their current work schedules. 

Offering flexibility doesn’t have to be hard or expensive to implement, but can help employers meet the demands of their workforce and differentiate themselves from the competition.