EU launches crackdown on illegal employment of foreigners

MEP Simon Busuttil is in Malta for a series of meetings as the EU embarks on a crackdown of illegal employment of foreigners.

Employers, especially those in the construction industry where illegal employment is rife, are being urged to put their house in order in preparation for tough EU-wide legislation.

As spokesman for the EPP-ED Group on an EU directive intended to clamp down on illegal employment, Dr Busuttil has now embarked on a consultation process to hear the views of the authorities, employers, trade unions, NGOs and even the immigrants themselves, before submitting amendments to the Commission proposal.

"The EU is carrying out this exercise because we need to give a message to Africa and the world that it will not tolerate this problem," Dr Busuttil told a news conference.

The possibility of finding work, even illegally, is known to be one of the key factors pulling illegal immigration into the EU. Practically all EU states already have sanctions, but these vary greatly and are poorly enforced.

Some employers take advantage of immigrants and offer low-skilled, poorly-paid jobs in unacceptable conditions, Dr Busuttil said.

Wages and working conditions leave much to be desired, putting legitimate workers, including Maltese, at a disadvantage, while fuelling xenophobia.

It puts companies that employ workers legally at a competitive disadvantage and Dr Busuttil recalled that the non-payment of taxes and social security affects government revenues adversely.

The European Commission is proposing sanctions on employers who breach this prohibition by imposing financial penalties, such as paying for the costs of return.

It is also suggesting administrative sanctions, such as the exclusion from public benefits and contracts.

Furthermore, criminal sanctions could be levelled out in cases of repeated offences, where four persons are employed illegally, and for imposing particularly exploitative conditions.

The EU is proposing the inspection of at least 10 per cent of all companies per year to keep a close check.

Employment Minister Louis Galea said there were just over 3,000 third-country nationals working temporarily in Malta.

He underlined the strict regulations adopted by the Employment and Training Corporation in a bid to weed out illegal workers.

Asked whether he feared that the elimination of foreign workers might effectively create a vacuum in the menial job sector, Dr Galea said all governments should aim towards spawning higher-education workers. It was also essential to monitor the situation to keep all job sectors supplied.

The European Parliament is expected to give a first reading to the draft directive in February.