Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)

While the Bill deals with the matter, employers are still being given an opportunity to seek a work permit. This matter should be examined on Committee Stage. Employers, notwithstanding their bona fides when applying for work permits, are tempted to exploit that opportunity. There is more opportunity for labour mobility if the employee is the custodian of the work permit, notwithstanding the strict rules governing work permits.

The legislation outlines the process an employee must go through to obtain a work permit under the green card system. We should examine this issue on Committee Stage. A green card is defined as "an identity document issued by a country's authorities affording non-citizens a number of the rights its citizens enjoy sometimes with the prospect of naturalisation". An example is the United States permanent resident card. Ireland could follow this example but make it employee rather than employer-based.

Since the publication of the Bill, the Minister has referred to green cards in an effort to suggest his Department has come up with a comprehensive and compassionate answer to the problems faced by migrant workers who keep this economy going. However, the last time I checked, citizens had the right to quit any job they liked and seek another. The same is not true of migrants; they do not have complete freedom in this regard. Different criteria apply to migrants workers and citizens, which should be acknowledged. We will decide on Committee Stage whether the Minister should go further to afford migrant workers more benefits and protections under our employment law. The legislation will make it easier for migrants to move job but an employee-based system should be examined.

I welcome the provisions for migrant protection in the legislation. Unfortunately, following the good work of Deputy Joe Higgins and others, we had the recent shocking revelations at GAMA Construction and Irish Ferries. We are going down an unsavoury road where employers may be tempted to indiscriminately dump domestic workers and employ foreign workers at a cheaper rate to reduce their cost base. That is completely at variance with the comments of successive Ministers, including the current Minister, about going up the value chain. Sean Dorgan, chief executive officer of the IDA, regularly states we are going up the value chain but the issues raised within these companies suggests we are going down the sewer regarding employment law and practice. These issues must be explored to prevent worker exploitation.

I acknowledge the Minister increased the number of inspectors attached to the labour inspectorate following these revelations and good enforcement is important. Deputy Howlin and I attended a committee meeting earlier at which the Association of Electrical Contractors made a presentation. It seldom happens that an august umbrella body representing employers informs a committee about how the Government is being ripped off, as legitimate contractors are being undercut by non-compliant contractors operating in a black market. Local authorities may even be getting in on the act by granting contracts to unscrupulous employers who have not adhered to agreements in place between the Department, employers and unions. The labour inspectorate is crucial, not only in respect of migrant workers but also in respect of other issues in the economy. People are tempted to offer a contact to the person who provides the cheapest quote, irrespective of whether he is compliant, because costs are increasing. Compliance with the legislation will be critical.

I refer to the Minister's second pillar, the intra-company transfer scheme. This is a new notion and I am not up to speed with the scheme. However, according to the Minister, it was implemented in the past and he is reintroducing a similar scheme.

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