Migrant Rights Centre Ireland (MRCI) has warned that there are "systemic and widespread" breaches of employment rights being experienced by migrant workers across Ireland.
MRCI has published a report, Tied to Exploitation: The Experience of Migrant Workers in Ireland, which includes a survey of over 1,000 employment permit holders.
According to MRCI, the findings paint a deeply troubling picture where workers are routinely underpaid, overworked, harassed and denied basic rights.
It adds that many feel powerless to speak out due to their dependency on a single employer for both their income and immigration status.
The most common breach identified in the survey was workers being treated less favourably than colleagues because of their permit status, something which was identified by more than a third of respondents.
More than a quarter of those surveyed said they had been subjected to excessive working hours.
Similar proportions identified being denied proper breaks and not being paid a Sunday premium.
Almost a quarter of respondents said they had experienced harassment, verbal or physical abuse at work.
Overall, the study found that 71% of general employment permit holders had experienced some form exploitation in employment, while 61% experienced severe exploitation, meaning repeated or multiple serious employment rights breaches.
Just over half of those who were exploited did not report it, primarily out of fear of losing their job or permit.
Of those who raised an issue with their employer, just 9% had it resolved positively, with 61% reporting no resolution and 19% experiencing retaliation, threats or dismissal.
"I worked 70 to 80 hours a week with no proper breaks. If you took a 15-minute break you would be in trouble," one anonymous respondent to the survey said.
"The company I worked for was always bringing up the fact I hold a work permit to force me to do all sort of illegal things, such as 12 hours shifts with no break," another said.
MRCI is calling on the Government to grant all employment permit holders the freedom to work in any job after two years, rather than the current five-year tie to a single employer.
This single reform, MRCI argues, would give workers the power to stand up for their rights and leave bad employers if they need to.
In 2024, the Government announced changes to the rules that allow certain categories of work permit holders to change employer after a specified period of time.
MRCI has said however the provisions are too restrictive as it only allows movement to the exact same job type for the full five-year permit period.
"If you are a general employment permit holder in Ireland, then more likely than not you have been exploited at some point," said Neil Bruton, MRCI Director.
This is not a problem affecting a small number of rogue employers – it is a systemic failure of the employment permit system."
"Workers are afraid to speak up because their job and their right to remain in Ireland depends on their employer."
"The system must change so that people can stand up for themselves more easily," Mr Burton said.
Other recommendations being made to the Government include the introduction of a new criminal offence for severe exploitation, and the banning of exploitative employers from applying for future employment permits.
The survey of 1,019 people was conducted between July 2025 and February 2026 and covered 58 nationalities across all major employment sectors, including healthcare, hospitality, agriculture, transport and construction.
MRCI defines exploitation as at least one substantial employment rights breach.
Severe exploitation is defined as at least two breaches, or at least one on a repeated or consistent basis.
