Migrant Workers Stage Demonstration at Minister Batt O'Keeffe's Office 2 June 2010, Dublin

national | worker & community struggles and protests | news report

Thursday June 03, 2010 10:49

by Migrant Rights Centre Ireland

On June 2nd 2010, over 200 migrant workers from across the country, along with trade union, community sector and employer allies, held a demonstration outside the offices of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Batt O'Keeffe, T.D., calling on him to give workers employed through the employment permit system the right to change employer.

The current employment permits system binds a worker to one employer. This is a leading factor in the exploitation of workers. 80% of MRCI's cases of exploitation involve workers in the employment permit system. Every day the MRCI hears from migrant workers who are unable to leave exploitative working conditions because of the rigid and inflexible employment permits system. The MRCI is seeking an administrative change which would give people the freedom to exit exploitative conditions and find alternative work within their job category, without having to go through an entirely new permit application with its unnecessary costs and delays. Many TDs are saying MRCI's proposal is sensible and the right thing to do, as do ICTU and employer bodies.

"Minister Batt O'Keeffe can change the lives of thousands with a simple administrative change," says Siobhán O'Donoghue, director of the MRCI. "Most workers on permits will only come forward to report exploitation if there is a way out that does not put their legal status at risk. The best way to protect workers and prevent exploitation is by giving the right to change employer, which gives them a fair chance to find an alternative and report exploitation."

"We are here today because we are trying to get Minister O'Keeffe to make the employment permit system fairer," says Zeno Arumugan, a work permit holder from Malaysia; "Right now it's impossible for me and 25,000 others in the system to change employer freely. This is causing huge problems. We are not asking for special treatment, just the basic equality and rights that other workers have."

"Minister Batt O'Keeffe's lack of action on our ongoing calls to give workers the right to change employer has led us to take action here today," says Hilda Regasi, a migrant worker from the Philippines and campaign volunteer. "Each day that passes without action from Minister O'Keeffe only enables this kind of exploitation to continue."

Caption: Video Id: 2eqowPbcgdI Type: Youtube Video
Video of Migrant workers protest

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Comments (3 of 3)

Employment Permits

by opus diablos - the regressive hypocrite party

Thu Jun 03, 2010 12:59

Damned right.These 'permits' are a part of the global program of economic apartheid.In South Africa they were just called 'the Pass Laws'.And beating the colour bar didn't take a feather out of the economic partitions.its still the corporate market uber alles.Financiers sophistic totalitarianism.Quite a cute little Hydra.If you tickle it under the chin it will lick your hand.Not an easy trick with your common or garden Hydra.

Work Permit Protest

by Jobless Irish

Sat Jun 05, 2010 16:35

There is absoutely no justification for issuing (or renewing) work permits. There should be an immediate moratorium on the issue of work permits and all renewals should have to pass a strictly regulated and verified Labour Market test and every effort made to hire unemployed EU citizens, where the work permit is not renewed the holder should leave the country immediately. The conditions attached to the work permit are quite clear to the applicants, by signing the form they accept these conditions, being granted a work permit does not give the applicant permission to reside in Ireland, it permits the holder to work in a specified job for a specified employer for a limited period of time. I cannot understand what gives these people the idea that they can just turn up and change the rules. It is time the government got to grips with the level of unemployment in Ireland and ensured that only EU citizens are employed until the unemployment rate drops back to below 4%.

to jobless irishman

by jobless Irishman two - the unemployed

Sat Jun 05, 2010 17:07

jobless, I think you are missing the point of the issue completely. letting employers own the permit means that they are free to super-exploit their workers. As you don't seem to be overly concerned with the issue of the exploitation of foreigners I'll try to explain how it effects you. By allowing the super exploitation of migrant labour it means that you are undercut as you will never be able to compete with what is effectively bonded labour. That means domestic maids for example have to work 60 plus hours a week at much less than minimum wage. These permits mean that a worker cannot quit a job so the wages remain low, much lower than you could probably afford to live on. By supporting the employers against the workers, you will remain unemployed. By the way the issue of WPPI and WPP2s are a much bigger issue for Irish labour. If you look on fas website the majority of jobs are internships, try competing with that...

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Migrant Workers Stage Demonstration at Minister Batt O'Keeffe's Office 2 June 2010, Dublin

Comments (3 of 3)