The government has rejected a Bill which would have defined the term ‘au pair’ and provided that an au pair staying with a host family and performing domestic and childcare duties in exchange for board, lodging and pocket money would not be legally regarded as an employee.

The Fianna Fail Bill, proposed by Anne Rabbitte TD, would define an au pair exchange as a cultural, educational exchange programme involving light child care and domestic chores in return for the host family providing lodging, hospitality and pocket money.

Rabbitte told the Dail that to create such a legal definition would preserve what she called a ‘cultural tradition’ which benefited both the host families and the young people concerned.

She claimed that 20,000 families who currently hosted au pairs were living in fear of being criminalised under employment law, in the light of recent rulings by the Workplace Relations Commission.

“The claim that the status quo arrangements are working and should not be touched is untenable," said Rabbitte. "Since March 2016, the 20,000 families who use au pairs have been terrified that they are breaking the law, which is why I have brought forward the Bill. People are asking us as legislators to assist and support them.

In Association with

“The case-by-case adjudication made by the courts or the WRC is not good for au pairs. The Bill will provide far superior protection for au pairs and host families than they enjoy. More than 50 cases are awaiting adjudication by the WRC. Many of these so-called au pairs were working up to 50 hours per week, often for two to four years, but that is not what the Bill is about.

“For the first time, it will make clear what is not an au pair exchange. It defines an au pair exchange as a cultural, educational exchange programme involving light child care and domestic chores in return for the host family providing lodging, hospitality and pocket money. The Bill will provide far greater protection for au pairs."

Rabbitte went on to say that the proposed new arrangement would provide much greater protection for au pairs with a much more easily accessible dispute resolution mechanism prior to going to the courts or the WRC.

Protections

“New protections for au pairs are provided in the following manner: first, the Bill will outlaw the current practice of au pairs and host families finding each other directly via au pair exchange websites. Under our legislation, for an au pair placement to be considered as such by law, au pairs and host families will have to go through an accredited agency or an intermediary.

“Second, the Bill provides for a written agreement between the host family and the au pair prior to entering any arrangement. These agreements will be standardised according to regulations set down by the minister in conjunction with the sector.

“The agreements will set down in detail what the light child care domestic chores will involve, how many hours per day or per week and, importantly, by definition, if au pairs work in excess of these hours, they will no longer be classed as au pairs but as domestic workers. In return, the agreement will specify the lodgings that will be provided to au pairs, their access to meals and other hospitality, as well as the pocket money they will be furnished with.”

Saying that without such measures the number of families taking traditional live-in au pairs would reduce significantly by between 80% and 90%, Rabbitte referred to the support she receives from her own au pair, who provided assistance from 3.00pm to 9.00pm five days per week, “giving a total of  30 hours. That is the support working families are looking for".

Brazilians

Childrens minister Katherine Zappone rejected the proposal, on feminist grounds and because the profile of what are called au pairs has changed. She said: “We are not talking about young European women in a gap year or part of a cultural exchange. Generally, we are talking about women between the ages of 30 and 35 years, a significant number of whom are from Brazil. Other deputies have mentioned that the Migrant Rights Centre of Ireland, MRCI, the front-line organisation in this regard, has reported that as many as 98% of these women are in their 30s, with half of them coming from South America.

“The Bill is not consistent with our movement towards a quality agenda for regulated child care. In light of the considerations I have outlined, the government is opposing the Bill.”

Employment minister Pat Breen asserted that the provisions of the Bill would breach EU law and rulings by the European Court of Justice, and listed several flaws in the Bill such as the specified work period of seven hours per day and the failure to define any level or amount of ‘pocket money’ as likely to create a sub-category of workers who could leaglly be exploited by hosts.

“The Bill before us today takes no account of the position under European law, as set down in the rulings of the Court of Justice of the EU,” he said.

The full debate is available on the Oireachtas website.