Racist attacks on migrant workers rise

A GROWING number of migrant workers are being subjected to racist attacks, harassment and discrimination in the workplace, according to the Equality Authority.

Despite a €3.73 million Government campaign, the largest proportion of complaints to the authority are racist related.

Instances of Travellers being dismissed once their Traveller identity is uncovered, also figure in the cases referred to the authority.

According to an assessment of the Equality Authority's current case file, 33% of its workload is race related, compared to 26.2% on gender grounds. The workplace discrimination figures were released yesterday to coincide with the launch of the fourth Anti-Racist Workplace Week.

Equality Authority chief executive Niall Crowley used the launch to call for more leadership in creating intercultural workplaces free from racism.

He said businesses should adopt the agenda developed by the International Migration Programme of the International Labour Office, Achieving Equality in Intercultural Workplaces an Agenda for Action.

The Agenda calls for induction training for migrant workers, job accommodation measures to take account of cultural diversity, training to address negative stereotypes of black and minority ethnic workers and to support anti-discriminatory behaviour.

It also calls for reviews of workplace systems for communication, recruitment and promotion to ensure their capacity to achieve equality, and implementation of positive action in the recruitment and promotion of black and minority ethnic workers.

It warns that instant and ad-hoc responses are not the solution to problems caused by ethnic diversity and it calls for comprehensive and strategic approaches.

Mr Crowley said responses to Anti-Racist Workplace Week had been encouraging and he welcomed the participation of Congress, IBEC, the Construction Industry Federation, the Small Firms Association (SFA) and the Know Racism campaign.

He said commitment was evident in the 241 companies who pledged themselves to be anti-racist workplaces.

Since the launch of the Government programme, Know Racism, in 2001, €3.73 million had been spent tackling racism up to the end of 2002. This included €708,000 on advertising campaigns, €350,000 on Anti-Racism Workplace Week and €1 million in grants.

IBEC said it was increasingly concerned "at the growing evidence of racism in Ireland, and its damaging effect on economic and social progress".

Pat Delaney, director of the SFA, said with some 222,000 non-Irish nationals living in Ireland, it made good economic sense for the small business sector to actively support diversity in Irish society.

Chairman of Know Racism, Joe McDonagh, said it was important racist behaviour and harassment in the workplace be challenged at every opportunity.