CMNT_TITLE

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Ireland (RATIFICATION: 1951)

Other comments on C081

Observation

Direct Request

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Articles 3(1)(a) and (b), 17 and 18 of the Convention. Strategy of the labour inspection services to ensure compliance with the legal provisions. The Committee notes the data and statistics provided by the Government in its report in reply to its previous request concerning the enforcement activities of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and the Health and Safety Authority (HSA). The Committee takes note of this information, which addresses its previous request.

Article 3(2) of the Convention. Additional duties entrusted to labour inspectors. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in reply to its request to indicate the measures it is taking to ensure that the functions assigned to labour inspectors do not interfere with the main objective of labour inspectors, and to provide information on the manner in which it ensures that the cooperation with the immigration authorities is kept separate from labour law enforcement activities, that: (1) the main interaction between the WRC and the Irish National Immigration Service/Garda National Immigration Bureau takes place in the context of inspections by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) seeking information on the right to work of third country nationals under immigration legislation, in order to ensure compliance with the Employment Permits Acts; (2) less than 10 per cent of inspections were carried out jointly with other regulatory bodies in 2019 and less than 2 per cent in 2020; 3) in 2020, no inspections were carried out with the Irish National Immigration Service and only a small number involved the Garda National Immigration Bureau, largely where serious exploitation of workers was suspected and where offences both under the remit of WRC Inspectors and the Garda were likely to have been involved.

Regarding its previous request for information on the possibility for foreign workers in an irregular situation to assert their rights before the courts, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (i) the WRC is willing to take forward proceedings which meet the criteria laid out in this regard in relevant provisions of the Employment Permits Act 2003, and actions for redress are brought in the Civil Courts rather than the Labour Courts; (ii) such action would be undertaken together with the main representative group dealing with Migrant Rights (Migrants Rights Centre of Ireland); and (iii) to date one such case has been successfully resolved by way of settlement with the employer concerned, while another case has been referred for consideration. The Committee also notes the indication by the Government that the WRC has highlighted the relevant provisions of the Employment Permits Act 2003 in public presentations to employees, employers and statutory bodies, and that it has undertaken to place relevant information on its website. The Committee welcomes the information provided and trusts that the Government will continue taking forward proceedings on behalf of foreign workers in an irregular situation and providing information and advice to such workers in order to allow them to assert their rights before the Courts, in addition to continuing its broader efforts to make the relevant provisions of the Employment Permits Act 2003 better known among employers, employees and statutory bodies.

Articles 10 and 16 of the Convention. Sufficient number of labour inspectors and adequate coverage of workplaces by labour inspection. The Committee notes that, according to the statistical information provided by the Government regarding the number of labour inspectors working at the WRC and the HSA and the inspection visits undertaken : 1) the number of inspectors at the HSA fell from 111 in 2018 to 105 in 2020 (although the number of full-time inspectors remained constant at 96); 2) the number of labour inspectors working at the WRC decreased from 58 in March 2018 to 52 in April 2021; 3) the number of inspection visits undertaken by the WRC increased from 5,753 in 2018 to 7,687 in 2020, and those undertaken by the HSA from 9,830 in 2018 to 10,295 in 2020. The Committee hopes that the Government will ensure that the number of labour inspectors is sufficient to secure the effective discharge of the duties of the inspectorate, and requests that the Government continue to provide statistical information on the number of labour inspectors working at the WRC and the HSA and the inspection visits undertaken by these bodies.

Articles 20 and 21. Annual labour inspection reports. The Committee notes the annual reports of the HSA and the WRC communicated with the Government’s report and available on the respective websites of those agencies, which largely include the information and statistics demanded by Article 21 of the Convention. The Committee takes due note of the Government’s indication that the WRC will review that Article with a view to ensuring the annual reports also contain all the data required to comply with Article 21(c) of the Convention (statistics of workplaces liable to inspection and the number of workers employed therein). The Committee requests the Government to continue its efforts to ensure that future annual reports on the labour inspection activities contain all the information required under Article 21 of the Convention, including Article 21(c).