Au pairs working in up to 20,000 Irish homes are being subjected to exploitation and abuses of labour law, according to new research by the Migrant Rights Centre of Ireland.
Originally, au pairs lived with a family on the basis of a cultural exchange to learn a language.
They were expected to help out with the children in return for pocket money of around €100 per week.
However, the latest MRCI research shows that au pairs are now being used by thousands of parents to replace costly full-time childcare and housekeepers.
Some are experiencing the same exploitation previously reported by other domestic workers.
The MRCI research finds that there is a growing informal workforce providing care in private homes nationwide where workers are unprotected and vulnerable.
It cites a report by the EU Fundamental Rights Agency that says in Ireland workers in private homes are most at risk of exploitation.
According to the research, some au pairs are working over 70 hours a week, for between €100 and €120 per week, with no overtime, extra pay for bank holidays, or proper breaks.
The MRCI said the Irish au pair industry is highly contradictory - as it seeks to exclude au pairs from employment laws, yet treats them as workers.
It states that the arrangement gives employers risk-free access to cheap labour outside of an employment relationship, but systematically fails au pairs and undermines work in the domestic sector.
It also warns the continued restriction of eligible categories of employment for work permits represents a serious and short-sighted failure to recognise the intersection of labour market demand and immigration policy for this sector.
It also points out that there is an absence of coherent data collection to enable proper mapping of the sector.
The MRCI said demand for domestic work will continue to grow as demographics change.
It urges the Government to introduce policies to boost protection, formalise the status of domestic workers and au pairs, and enforce their employment rights.
