Irregular immigrants should be afforded data protection to fight exploitation by abusive employers and cheap labour, according to a report by the EU’s Fundamental Rights Agency.
Courts are only being used as a last resort to access justice
Malta was generally mentioned positively in the report as a member state which respects the basic rights of migrants, including those without any sort of regular status on the island.
However, the agency suggests Malta adopt Spain’s example and provide migrants with data protection so that if they are exploited by abusive employers they can claim their rights without the fear of being deported.
The report, Migrants In An Irregular Situation In The EU, was released in Brussels yesterday.
It says Maltese law gives the right to all employees – including those employed irregularly, to be adequately paid, at least up to the level of a minimum wage. However, many immigrants are afraid of reporting abuses for fear they will be prosecuted instead for staying or working illegally.
Spain has a law on data protection, which does not allow the disclosure of personal data to the police, unless the case concerns a criminal offence punishable with imprisonment of more than one year.
Maltese law does not give any effective protection to abused irregular migrant workers even though it recognises their right to be paid adequately and to make claims against those abusing them.
The Employment and Industrial Relations Act in Malta provides a mechanism for claiming withheld pay that migrants, in an irregular situation, may also access provided an employment relationship can be proven. However, other parts of the law make this right difficult if not impossible to obtain in practice.
This situation is similar to the majority of other member states, which according to the agency, is encouraging the abuse and exploitation of irregular migrants as bosses know it is not in the migrants’ interest to report them.
As a response to this anomaly, the agency’s research found that when disputes arise between employers and employees, courts are only being used as a last resort to access justice.
Instead, a common strategy for migrants in an irregular situation is to switch employers and not to report mistreatment, discriminatory or abusive behaviour by employers.
The agency underlined the need for access to justice by irregular migrants to be bolstered by removing practical barriers. Additionally, member states with these anomalies, including Malta, should ensure “where possible, any personal data revealing migrants’ identity or whereabouts are not shared with immigration enforcement bodies when migrants seek redress from abusive employers”.