A Wicklow hotelier has accused the Tánaiste of issuing work- permit restrictions from an "ivory tower" and failing to recognise the repercussions for employers.
Ms Lorraine Sweeney says the new restrictions announced by Ms Harney's Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment this week will have a "crippling" effect on her business.
Ms Sweeney owns the Woodland Court Hotel in Bray and the Summerhill House Hotel in Enniskerry, as well as a catering company and Beshoff's restaurants in Dublin. She will not be allowed to recruit reception or bar staff on work permits for at least the next three months, under the restrictions announced by the Department on Monday.
Vacancies in other areas such as child-minding, sales, transport, labouring and crafts including carpenters and plumbers will also have to be filled by workers from within Ireland and the European Economic Area (EEA). Staff on existing work permits that are due for renewal, however, will not be affected.
The EEA comprises the EU states, as well as Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland. Work permits are required for non-EEA nationals.
The department says the restrictions were arrived at following an "intensive analysis" of the skills profile of job-seekers registered with the State employment agency, FÁS.
Ms Sweeney, however, said she would challenge Ms Harney "to fill her department with people from the FÁS files".
Irish people, she said, were no longer available to do many of the jobs on offer in the catering trade, even if they were registered with FÁS as seeking employment.
"There might be growing unemployment, but forcing employers to take on people who don't want to work is not going to solve the problem."
She had advertised four jobs with FÁS in recent weeks, and while the agency said it had referred eight people to her, none had got in touch. One of those jobs was for a bar position, one of the categories the department has decided cannot be filled by work permit staff until the end of June at least.
Ms Sweeney said she had also publicly advertised two weeks ago for a supervisory position in Beshoff's. All 12 replies had been from non-nationals.
Most of the 150-plus staff in her hotels and other businesses were Irish, she stressed, but about 30 were from non-EEA countries. In her experience, people employed on work permits were enthusiastic and hard-working. "They pay taxes, contribute to the economy and save money to send home. It's an arrangement that benefits us and benefits them."
Restrictions on hiring them, she said, would cripple her business "and prevent us from growing and developing".
A spokeswoman for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment said the changes had been introduced after a meticulous analysis of the labour market within Ireland the EEA.They would be monitored and reviewed after each quarter.
