Immigrant workers
Higgins and Harney clash over GAMA exploitation

By Joe Higgins, TD

During today's Leaders' Questions, Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins tackled the Tánaiste Mary Harney (who was Minister for Trade & Enterprise when GAMA were invited to Ireland) over the delaying of the report into the GAMA slave labout scandal.

Joe Higgins (Socialist Party): Has the Tánaiste been briefed on the report by the labour inspectorate into the international Turkish-based construction company, GAMA? The Tánaiste went to Turkey and invited Turkish big business to come to Ireland. Was she aware then, or since, that GAMA, which came at her invitation, combines the most advanced technology with the most primitive techniques of worker exploitation, perfected in many states in the Middle East, and then imported intact into Ireland four and a half years ago?

GAMA swore to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, of which the Tánaiste was then in charge, and to the trade unions that it paid the agreed rates to all its Turkish workers - a minimum of €12.96 per hour and overtime. However, with consummate cynicism, GAMA paid Irish workers those rates, but not the Turkish workers.

GAMA never gave its Turkish workers legal payslips. I have GAMA payslips. One such pay-slip for a worker named Jamal was typical. It shows that in one month last summer he worked 330 hours, which is a monstrous 80 hours plus per week. Leaving aside overtime, on the flat rate, he should have received a minimum of €4,200 a month but he got less than €1,000. This is a bank statement from his account in the 'Is Bank' in Turkey showing that he received less than €250 in cash to spend in Ireland for the month. The rest, less than €1,000, was paid into a Turkish lira and euro account in Turkey. Where did that worker's €3,000 monthly income go?

When the investigation began, the Turkish workers were coached, under severe duress, to say the money went to accounts in their names in Finansbank in Holland. They had to be coached because no worker knows, or knew, that they had accounts in their names in Finansbank in Holland. What we have, in fact, is a master fraud by a major entity in the construction scene in this country; a grand larceny of workers' wages amounting to millions of euro each month. Tens of millions of euro have been stolen from the workers over the past year alone. GAMA paid not a penny in income tax on behalf of the workers because the company is exempt by agreement with the Tánaiste and the Revenue Commissioners from paying income tax.

Apart from the slave wage rates, that agreement gives the company a hugely competitive edge over other construction companies that pay trade union rates. This is the most severe corporate criminality. It represents the most severe exploitation of workers and is a threat to the wages and conditions of all workers, whether Irish or immigrant. I want this report published and I want action to be taken on it immediately.

The Tánaiste: The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment has initiated an inquiry which the labour inspectorate is currently carrying out. I understand it will be available to him shortly. In advance of that inquiry, the Minister has briefed the Cabinet on some of the issues to which Deputy Joe Higgins has referred. Our law gives equal protection to foreign and Irish workers. It does not discriminate in any respect in favour of our indigenous population or other Europeans, as opposed to those from outside the European Union. I have no reason to doubt that the Deputy's information is correct.

If it stands up when the labour inspectorate produces its report, it will be a disgrace that any workers could be treated and exploited in that fashion. Clearly, the Minister will act. I understand he has already given work permits to some of the workers in that company so they can move elsewhere and seek employment from alternative employers. The Minister will have to take advice on whether he can publish the report. He will have to bring the report to the attention of other authorities, such as the Revenue Commissioners or the director of corporate enforcement. The Minister and his Department have been in constant contact with the Deputy since he raised this issue in the House a couple of weeks ago.

J. Higgins: Yes, it was seven weeks ago. Those who are now trying to delay the report - certain corporate entities which have stuff to hide - had plenty of time to come forward. The Independent Deputies have afforded me the opportunity to raise this crucial issue. They have done a good service to Irish and immigrant workers. Unfortunately, I have not seen the report of the labour inspectorate, although I would like to have a copy of it. I know, however, that the inspectorate has worked extremely hard on foot of the allegations made and the information supplied to it by the Socialist Party.

I want to secure the jobs of Irish and Turkish workers in GAMA who, for the most part, are family men. I want to see the immediate payment of trade union rates to all workers. I want to see the payment of all back money stolen from the Turkish workers, which amounts to tens of millions of euro. I want the Garda fraud squad, the corporate enforcement agency or any other agency to examine the accounts forensically to see the precise mechanism by which this fraud was perpetrated. Irish and immigrant workers should never again have to face employers using the methods of GAMA, which involve criminal exploitation in the extreme. Will the Tánaiste say what the main conclusions of the briefing were? She should share that with us because the matter is in the public domain.

The Tánaiste: The briefing simply told me that the Minister is awaiting the report but I understand that a draft of the report has been circulated in the interests of natural justice. If the report bears out what the Deputy is saying, and I am not casting doubt in any way on what he has said, then it is a total disgrace. All the forces of the State will have to be brought to bear on this issue to ensure it cannot recur. Of course, all the employees will have to receive their entitlements. As I said, the law does not discriminate in favour of Irish workers at the expense of others. We have a very successful economy. We have provided good employment, in the main, to immigrant workers, and we want that to continue. However, we do not want to see any worker, no matter who it is, exploited in the fashion the Deputy suggested.

For further information, contact Joe Higgins at (01) 618 3038
Email: joe.higgins@oireachtas.irlgov.ie