Stockholm — On Friday, the heads of Sweden’s largest companies, including clothing giant H&M and telecoms maker Ericsson, denounced deportations of highly skilled workers as the nation’s technology sector suffers a shortage of staff. In a letter published by the financial daily Dagens Industri and signed by about 30 bosses — including H&M CEO Stefan Persson and Ericsson CEO Börje Ekholm — they write that expulsions of foreign employees "harm business" and that "Swedish companies need to hire globally". "We cannot expect engineers, IT technicians, and other specialists to leave their countries if they risk expulsion from Sweden for unpredictable reasons," they added. The migration agency has faced criticism for refusing to extend foreign employees’ work permits, leading to expulsion, on controversial grounds. Hussein Ismail, a Lebanese engineer at a biotech company he founded in 2012, is facing deportation along with his wife and children after cutting his own wages for three months ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.