Brexit and precarity: Polish female workers in the UK as second‐class citizens?

Abstract

AbstractImmigration was a decisive factor in pre‐Brexit‐vote debates and it remains one of the most divisive topics globally; therefore, it is worthy of attention. Whilst the British people had an opportunity to have their say on Brexit, EU migrant workers have not. This article gives them a voice as it is based on original data from 40 qualitative interviews with female EU citizens to the UK, conducted before and after the Brexit‐vote. This article further develops the notion of precarity in relation to EU migrants to the UK in light of Brexit and adds to debates on gender in migration. This paper provides wider policy implications for the British and other EU countries' authorities as it engages with debates on Brexit from the point of view of the UK labour force as voices of economic women migrants from Poland are presented.