1. Country Presentation on Migrant Workers Ireland Kasia Garbal Irish Congress of Trade Unions

2. Migrant Workers in Ireland Numbers ROI – ca. 10% of population – 10.7 % of workforce (2006 Census) NI – 3 % of population – 5% of workforce Majority EU Numbers declining in both jurisdictionsSectors 3D occupations: dirty, difficult, dangerous Catering, hospitality, cleaning, agriculture, food processing, construction, nursing and care sector Main problems Exploitation and discrimination (contracts; pay and working conditions; irregular payment; withholding of wages and holiday entitlement; race and sex discrimination) Weak enforcement mechanisms of employment rights/ limited possibilities of legal redress/ employers’ impunity Agency workers Immigration policies: Work permits/ Destitution Forced labour  Recession – calls for limit on immigration/ “local jobs for local workers”/ migrants disproportionately affected/ unemployment/ increase in racist attitudes/ budget cuts to human rights bodies Migration to Ireland relatively new phenomenon, as traditionally Ireland – country of emigrants.

3. Challenges to Organising  Misconceptions about trade unions  Lack of knowledge of union structures and ways of operating  Fragmentation of workers and workplaces  Vulnerable workers: poorly paid and unregulated sectors/ weak contractual relationships  Agency workers  Language barrier  Fear of employers  Under-developed community support infrastructures  Lack of visibility of migrant workers in union structures  Lack of data on ethnicity of members difficult to assess effectiveness of strategies Move from passive membership to self-organisation and activism Membership – no data on ethnicity collected Large scale immigration to Ireland – recent (immigration doubled 2004/2008) Unions are facing difficulties – limited resources

4. Good Practice Models Organising campaigns in strategic sectors – significant numbers of mw recruited (Unite and SIPTU) Unison – Migrant Workers Project – Immigration clinics Involvement through Union Learning/ ESOL Bilingual Organisers and cooperation with migrant organisations, i.e. Migrants Rights Centre (ROI) and NICEM (NI) ICTU Migrant Workers Support Unit Translated documents Congress guidelines Combating Racism and Planning for Diversity and “Promoting Equality in Diversity: Migration-Integration” training toolkit

5. Campaigns and Collaborations SIPTU partnership with Migrants Rights Centre – Mushroom Workers Support Group – organising the sector resulted in improving pay and conditions/ Fair Deal for Cleaners and Fair Hotels campaign Campaign to support Filipino fishermen – ICTU, International Transport Federation, Unison and NICEM Agency Workers Directive/ UNITE Same Pay-Same Status campaign/ SIPTU Agency Workers Together Fighting Exploitation Campaign to Secure the Rights of Domestic Workers - Domestic Workers Action Group at Migrants Rights Centre, ICTU and National Women's Council of Ireland have called on the Irish Government to commit to ratifying the Convention

6. ICTU Migrant Workers Support Unit  Established in 2007 (following ICTU research report)  Bi-lingual Migrant Workers Support Officer  Lead on Congress policies affecting migrant workers  Permanent support centre and outreach clinics across NI  Representation of migrant workers (funding by Peace III through Belfast City Council)  Dedicated advice helpline  Cooperation with trade unions and migrant community organisations  Training and seminars on employment rights and trade unions  Publications:  “Your Rights at Work”: pocket-guide in 8 languages  “ I’m not a Racist, but…”: myth-busting pamphlet