"New law to fix 'stolen wages' of undocumented workers", 17 July 2014

New employment legislation has been welcomed by the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland as an important step in preventing the exploitation of undocumented migrant workers in Ireland. The Employment Permits (Amendment) Bill 2014 was passed in Leinster House..., and is due to come into effect on 1 September. The Bill's explanatory memo says that it extends the provisions of the Employment Permits Acts 2003 and 2005 to "address deficiencies identified in the legislation with the potential for employers to benefit from (at the cost of the employee) the un-enforceability of employment contracts in situations where an employee does not hold an employment permit but is required to do so"...Speaking about the legislation's approval at Government Buildings, Younis said: This will make sure that workers like me will have the opportunity to claim stolen wages back through the courts. All undocumented workers exploited by unscrupulous employers in Ireland will now have their rights vindicated. The MRCI said the legislation will allow undocumented workers who had previously held a work permit and lost it through no fault of their own to get another work permit. MRCI Coordinator Gráinne O'Toole said that the rights group has some concerns about the legislation, including concerns over the potential use of work permit information for ethnic profiling, but that overall it is "progressive legislation".