Immigrant employees - Exploitation practice must be stopped

The Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) has rightly condemned the practice by some companies and recruiting agencies of exploiting immigrant employees.

The union has promised to name and shame the offending companies and agencies within the next fortnight.

Last week the issue was highlighted when it was disclosed that workers formally employed by a recruiting agency were earning almost half as much as their fellow workers at Musgraves’ distribution centre in Dublin. The company stated it had no control over the pay of those workers as they are employed by the recruiting agency.

Musgraves has begun negotiations with SIPTU to look after the interests of those exploited workers. The union insists, however, that a similar disparity remains at a number of other distribution centres.

Some workers are being asked to work for as much as 12-hour shifts for six days straight, without any overtime. Then, they may not get any other work for weeks. This is a gross form of exploitation.

It is in the interest not only of migrant workers, but society generally, that such exploitation should not be permitted, because ultimately all workers will be exploited if this practice is not nipped in the bud.