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Only 11 of the 50 permits made available to dairy farmers for non-European Economic Area (EEA) dairy workers by the Department of Enterprise and Business have been granted to date.
In May of this year, Minister Heather Humphreys announced that a pilot quota of employment permits were to be made available to dairy farmers, as well as the meat processing and horticulture sectors.
Speaking at an IFA employment seminar, Department of Enterprise official Kieran Harrington said there had been low demand for the permits from the dairy side.
There has been equally low demand in the horticulture sector, where just 39 permits out of a possible 500 were granted. Harrington said this was likely due to the timing of the permits, which came in May after peak labour demands.
Meat processing
In contrast, the meat processing industry has been extremely active in pursuing permits.
Having filled the initial quota of 250, it was extended to 750. Harrington said the new allocation was almost fully taken up. He said an employer could apply for a permit for a non-EEA worker only if they were unable to recruit an Irish or EEA national. The waiting time for these permits is currently 12 weeks.
A fee of €1,000 is also required to apply for a permit.
If the application is unsuccessful 90% of the cost will be refunded.
Payment
Farmers are required to pay permit workers a minimum of €22,000 a year based on a 39-hour week. If more hours are worked, the annual pay must be increased.
To secure a permit, a farmer must follow a step-by-step guide set down by the Department. Harrington said the step that most failed on was the labour market needs test, which determines if the job was sufficiently advertised first.
To pass the needs test, an employer must advertise the job on the Department’s website for at least two weeks, in a national newspaper for three days, and with a local paper for three days. The ad is also required to contain specific information detailed on the Department’s website.
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