Permits for foreign workers to be limited

EMPLOYERS are facing a heavy crackdown on the number of permits issued to foreign workers from next May due to the enlargement of the EU.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Harney, has confirmed that applications for work permits for people outside the EU will “not be favourably considered”.

The decision is a response to the anticipated arrival of up to 50,000 workers from the 10 new EU member states over the next year. The countries are Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Malta and Cyprus.