Minister Richmond must act to protect work permit holders
A worker previously employed at a restaurant in Skerries, Co. Dublin has been awarded a total of €143,268 by an Adjudication Officer for gross breaches of her employment rights as notified in a decision published today by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).
Ms. Sharanjeet Kaur originally from India came to work in Ireland in 2021 with an employment permit as a Chef De Partie with Bombay Bhappa Limited t/a Bombay House, Skerries, Co. Dublin. During her employment she was subjected to extreme exploitation, discrimination, sexual harassment and several other violations of her employment rights (see link to copy of full WRC decision ADJ-00045992 below).
Ms. Kaur was represented before the WRC by the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland.
Members of the Gardaí were also present at the adjudication hearing reportedly to protect Ms. Kaur after having received a previous complaint of witness intimidation and to investigate a complaint of human trafficking.
According to Neil Bruton, MRCI Campaign’s Coordinator , “It’s not a surprise that people from outside the EU with employment permits are exploited in this fashion. We see exploitation like this all the time. Permit holders such as Ms. Kaur are tied to their employer for a minimum of five years before they can change job. Employers know this, so people are often made to endure extreme exploitation with no option to work elsewhere. Leaving their work means they risk becoming unemployed, losing their immigration status and becoming homeless.”
Mr. Bruton continued;
“The MRCI has been campaigning for many years for people with employment permits to have the right to change employer. We are appealing to Minister Neale Richmond to make it an absolute priority to pass legislation that is now awaiting Committee Stage in the Seanad which will finally grant permit holders the right to change employer so they can protect themselves from this kind of exploitation.
“Everyone deserves to have the ability to stand up for themselves in their job. Unfortunately, we will continue to see people exploited at the hands of unscrupulous employers until the Minister passes this Bill.”
“We commend the bravery and courage of Ms. Kaur in coming forward in a very difficult and risky situation. We hope that the award in her favour will encourage others in similar situations to come forward and seek justice against exploitation which is growing across Ireland.”
Notes to editor
- Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer Decision, Adjudication Reference: ADJ-00045992 can be found at https://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/cases/2024/march/adj-00045992.html
- The Employment Permits Bill, 2002 is coming to Committee stage in Seanad Éireann. See https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/bills/bill/2022/91/ for more information on the legislation.
- Link to MRCI Campaign page on Making the Employment Permit System Fairer https://www.mrci.ie/employment-permits-campaign/
