Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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177. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if she is considering regulating the live-in au pair market as in other European countries in order to reduce the occurrence of abuse in the sector; if her attention has been drawn to the exploitation in the live-out au pair market where au-pairs regularly have no protection due to the fact that this type of employment tends to subsidise foreign students whose visas do not permit employment; if she will consider bringing this sector out of the black economy by way of legislation akin to JobBridge and make the necessary provisions in law by amending the visa scheme. [27611/14]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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Regulation of working conditions is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. In this regard I understand that that there is no legal definition of an “au pair” in Irish legislation but that the State's body of employment rights legislation protects all employees who are legally employed on an employer-employee basis, regardless of what title is given to them.

I am informed that where the National Employment Rights Authority (NERA), which comes within the remit of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, receives a complaint involving somebody described as an au pair, NERA will investigate with a view to establishing the person’s statutory entitlements under employment law (including whether the term “au pair” is being used to avoid statutory obligations). NERA has encountered individuals, described by their employers as au pairs, who have been found to be domestic employees. In such cases NERA will seek to vindicate the rights of all workers in accordance with its mandate and powers under employment legislation.

The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation does not issue Employment Permits in respect of au pairs, child minders or domestic workers and therefore, from the perspective of my Department, there is no immigration permission specifically assigned to these categories of activity. Accordingly if a non-EEA national sought permission to come to Ireland to work as an au pair they should be refused permission. That does not prevent EU nationals exercising rights of free movement and engaging in this activity. I am aware that in some cases non-EEA students may be doing au pair work and this matter is currently being reviewed in my Department in the context of further reform in the area of non-EEA student immigration.

I would urge the Deputy, if he is aware of any case where an employee is being exploited in this context, to report the specifics to NERA for investigation.