Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Fee-Charging Employment Agencies Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 96) - Ireland (Ratification: 1972)

Part III of the Convention. Articles 12–14. Regulation of fee-charging employment agencies. The Government indicates in its report that Ireland remains in compliance with the provisions of the Convention. The Ministry for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation supervises the activities of fee-charging employment agencies through authorized officers appointed under the Employment Agency Act, 1971. As of the end of 2014, there were 57 such officers authorized to carry out inspections to verify compliance under various sections of the employment legislation. The Government indicates that eight inspections were carried out in 2014. Six of the eight cases were found to be in breach of the legislation; five violations involved agencies operating without a valid licence; and one involved failure to provide the authorized officer with required information. In contrast, 23 inspections were conducted in 2013, which identified no violations. In relation to the regulation of temporary employment agencies, the Committee notes the amendment to the Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Act 2012 (No. 13 of 2012), which expanded the definition of an employment agency to include temporary employment agencies and made it an offence for an employment agency to charge a fee to place the temporary worker to a third party. The Committee further notes the provisions governing the placement of workers, particularly workers under the age of 18, for work abroad. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the penalties imposed for violation of the Protection of Employees Act in relation to illegal fee-charging for temporary employment services, the number of inspections and types of violations detected, and any additional measures taken or envisaged to give effect to Part III of the Convention, including any measures taken or envisaged to increase and intensify inspections and strengthen the functioning of the authorized officers in relation to matters covered under the Convention.