Dan Neville
Question:231. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his views on correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46396/15]
View answerThursday, 17 December 2015
Questions (231)
Written answers
As the Deputy is referring to a national of another EU Member State moving to work in Ireland the principle of free movement of workers between EU member States applies. Any discrimination based on nationality against EU workers as regards employment, remuneration, or working conditions is not permitted.
The Deputy will understand that I am not in a position to comment or advise in relation to the employment or other rights applying to any individual’s specific circumstances. Independent legal advice should be sought in relation to any concerns an individual may have about their situation.
Ireland has a comprehensive body of employment rights, equality and industrial relations legislation, in respect of which the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) is mandated to secure compliance. The Workplace Relations Customer Service Section provides information in relation to the rights and obligations under the relevant legislation. It can be contacted at Lo-call: 1890 80 80 90. The website www.workplacerelations.ie also provides extensive information on employment rights.
However, in so far as the Deputy is referring to the position of posted workers within the EU, the Deputy may wish to be aware that the Posted Workers Directive 96/71/EC (the 1996 Framework Directive) aims to balance the freedom to provide services across the Internal Market while ensuring that the rights and working conditions of posted workers are protected. 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.
The Framework Directive provides that posted workers are entitled to core statutory employment rights in the country to which they are posted including, for example, national minimum rates of pay, minimum paid annual holidays, maximum work periods and minimum rest periods. Employers may apply the rights of the home Member State (i.e. the Member State where the posted worker normally works) if they are more favourable, or offer enhanced terms and conditions as an incentive for working away from home, but this would be a contractual agreement and not a statutory obligation. In Ireland, the Framework Directive was transposed by section 20 of the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001.