Meeting to hear whistleblower claims of sexual and physical exploitation

A survey of 415 workers in the Galway area has uncovered regular incidents of sexual and physical abuse, wholesale breaches of labour law and manipulation of vulnerable workers in the workplace.

The results of the study will be presented to a public meeting next Monday where workers will give first-hand accounts of their experiences.

Senator Trevor Ó Clochartaigh said industry whistle-blowers such as Eva Mitchell will lift the lid on some of the appalling abuses that are happening in the hospitality industry in Galway, abuse he says that is commonplace, even in many of Galway’s most ‘respectable’ establishments.

The survey records incidents of wages being withheld, tips not being distributed properly, accounts of verbal abuse by management and workers being forced to work without proper breaks. If a complaint is made, workers are sacked, he said.

“We are calling on hospitality workers, restaurant and hotel owners and managers and anyone who has an interest in fostering a positive work culture in the hospitality sector in Galway to come along and hear for themselves,” urged the Sinn Féin senator.

“We would love to see Galway as a centre of excellence for the hospitality sector worldwide, but to achieve that we need a huge culture shift and an acknowledgement from the industry that there are serious problems which must be addressed as a matter of urgency. That is what this campaign is all about.”

The city hospitality industry was quick to rubbish the claims by Senator Ó Clochartaigh. The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) and the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI) have said the allegations were “without foundation”,

They encouraged any employee with a grievance to make a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission.

The RAI said not one member of its association has been found guilty of any of the allegations raised by the Carraroe politician.

The IHF said people working in Irish hotels are among the most highly protected workers in Europe.

“The rights of staff working in the hotels sector, as with all employees in Ireland, are protected by over 50 separate pieces of employment legislation including the Working Time Directive and the National Minimum Wage Act. Employment rights compliance is overseen and monitored by the Workplace Relations Commission.

“These rights are promoted and rigorously adhered to across our sector and any suggestion otherwise is without foundation.”

■ For more on this story, see the print edition of the Galway City Tribune.