News Archive

Congress warns on Agency Bill 'Loopholes'

Date Released: 25 January 2012

Congress warned on the Wednesday (25th January) that ‘loopholes and flaws’ in the Agency Workers’ Bill could serve to undermine the purpose of the original Agency Workers Directive, along with existing equality legislation.

The warning came as a Congress delegation, headed by vice President Patricia King, briefed the Oireachtas Select sub-Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation on union concerns in relation to the draft legislation.

Speaking after the briefing session Congress Legislation and Legal Affairs Officer, Esther Lynch, said that unions had expressed the fear that the bill as drafted contained numerous flaws and loopholes which could serve to undermine the original directive, which aimed to introduce equal conditions for agency workers, and could damage existing Irish equality legislation.

Esther Lynch said that these loopholes would also mean that “unscrupulous firms would be able undercut decent employers and conditions generally could worsen.  As its stands we are not convinced that the bill meets what should be its primary objective of ensuring equality of treatment for agency workers.”

A full copy of the Congress Submission click here.