The Government has signed into law provisions to afford better protection to foreign workers who are posted to work in Ireland.
However, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has criticised the regulations, saying they leave many workers vulnerable and unable to vindicate their rights where breaches and abuses occur.
The new European Union (Posting of Workers) Regulations 2016 are intended to strengthen the enforcement of employment rights for posted workers and ensure that foreign service providers operating here respect labour standards applicable in Ireland.
Posted Workers are individuals who are employed in one EU member state but are posted by their employer to work in another member state on a temporary basis.
Under the regulations, foreign service providers posting workers to Ireland must notify the Workplace Relations Commission so that the WRC can ensure compliance with posting rules.
In the construction sector, where breaches of employment rights have arisen in the past, foreign posted construction workers who are not paid their full entitlements will be able take a legal claim not only against their direct employer, but also against the next contractor "one step up" the supply chain - thus expanding the range of legal liability on the employer side.
The workers will have the right to lodge a complaint against both the employer and the "one step up" contractor as respondents.
Employers will be able to defend a claim on the basis of having carried out due diligence.
There will also be new measures allowing for the enforcement by the WRC of cross-border financial and administrative penalties and fines.
Minister for Jobs Enterprise and Innovation Mary Mitchell O'Connor said the regulations would allow workers posted to Ireland to enforce the rights they are entitled to under the original EU Posted Workers Directive.
Minister of State for Employment and Small Business Pat Breen said the directive was being transposed in a balanced way that provided significantly strengthened protections for posted workers while minimising the cost on compliant employers.
However, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions said the decision not to fully transpose elements of the original EU Directive would make it extremely difficult for posted workers, their unions or even inspectors of the WRC to vindicate their rights.
General Secretary Patricia King recently wrote to Ms Mitchell O'Connor pointing out that the Government had declined to ensure that workers posted to Ireland would be capable of representation by trade unions while working here.
The measures take effect from today.
