Employers face tough new laws on illegal workers

EMPLOYERS who hire foreign workers without work permits will face heavy fines or jail terms of up to 10 years under new laws, it emerged last night.

Under the current system employers do not face any sanction by using illegal labour, while employees face heavy penalties such as deportation. But Justice Minister Michael McDowell will change this under amendments to the Immigration Bill which is before the Dáil.

It includes fines of up to 3,000 and 12 month jail terms for summary crimes for both employers and employees. But employers found guilty of using illegal labour on a large scale face fines of up to 250,000 and 10 years in jail.