Issues and Challenges in the Recruitment and Selection of ...

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• There was also the view that Irish employers lack awareness of theNational Qualification Framework (NQF) system and furthermore thatthey are disinclined to go to the trouble to validate or establish theappropriateness of unfamiliar qualifications. Others suggested thatit suits some employers to misunderstand the qualifications systembecause they can avoid paying the going rate by suggesting that themigrant worker is less qualified than his/her Irish counterpart.• There was a strong view expressed that employers need much moreawareness and support around the NQF structure with a view to ensuringthat they are informed of and sensitized to the framework and theposition of various qualifications within it. There was a parallel view thatthere is a need for NQF personnel to work more closely with migrantcommunities to establish their needs in this area. Finally, the suggestionwas made that NQF information be made available in the principallanguages of migrants and in easily understood English.2.6.4 Irish Experience and ReferencesThe issue of Irish employers requiring Irish experience and references has beenidentified in earlier research. This issue was also frequently referred to byparticipants in the focus groups and by agencies supporting immigrant workers.Among organisations surveyed, these preferences on the part of employers wereconsidered to be a major problem in securing employment, particularly in theprivate sector. A related issue identified by representative organisations was thediscounting of relevant experience in the home country.The need for Irish references and Irish experience was also frequently mentionedas a problem by focus group participants. In their view most Irish employersseem to place a lot of store by references, regarding them as a form of verifiablevalidation of the candidate. Not having an Irish reference was considered to bea particular disadvantage when immigrants were competing for jobs with Irishworkers. Focus group participants also perceived that their experience in theircountry of origin or in other countries, no matter how skilled or how relevant thatexperience was, tended to be discounted by Irish employers. This problem wasmost frequently cited by Africans.Some focus group participants had tried to circumvent these problems by workingas volunteers in community sector organisations and using this to develop theirexperience and acquire references. This was not an option open to all however asthe skills deployed in the community sector had to be relevant to job aspirations.38Issues and Challenges in the Recruitment and Selection of Immigrant Workers in Ireland
Another approach taken by a number of focus group participants was to seekwork within the relevant sector but at a level below their own skills or experienceand to use this to demonstrate their capacity and acquire experience. Somenoted that they had deliberately tailored their CVs to suggest a lower level ofqualification and experience in their home country in order to take this route.2.6.5 Legal issuesThe vast majority of participants in the focus groups were eligible to work inIreland but had different legal bases upon which to do so: some were EU citizens,some were on work permits, some had refugee or related status and some wereon student visas. Among all participants however, and among the organisationsconsulted with, there was a view that legal issues present significant difficultiesfor immigrants.• There was a strong perception that the various entitlements to workassociated with different legal status, are poorly understood by employers.This can mean that employers are unsure of which job applicants requirepermits or other formal procedures and frequently they are de-motivatedto take on the additional effort of establishing the position. As a result,the view among many immigrants and the peer led groups (and a viewcorroborated by some recruitment agencies and employers) is that, givena choice, employers will gravitate to the easiest option.• The difficulty for both applicants and employers in seeking clarification onentitlement to work and related issues was also noted along with theperception that, frequently, officials in the various Departments do notalways appear to be clear on the up to date position. The situation ofBulgarians and Romanians was noted to be particularly problematic, butpeople with refugee status also cited incidences of employers assumingbecause they were not EU citizens that they could not work.• For students who are pursuing accountancy or other similar careersthat require an element of serving time following the academic aspect tothe qualification, there are difficulties trying to get employers (particularlysmaller employers) to understand their status and the fact that they havethe right to work in that context.• The ongoing changes to an already complex body of legislation were citedas unhelpful for both employers and immigrants. So too was theperceived failure to conduct meaningful consultations with immigrantsabout legislative changes that affect them.39
Page 2: 2Issues and Challenges in the Recru
Page 7: Chapter 1Exploring the Recruitment
Page 10 and 11: persecution. Economic migrants enco
Page 12 and 13: • The third group is the so-calle
Page 14 and 15: • Green Cards, which have replace
Page 16 and 17: Employment Services (LES) although
Page 18 and 19: Unemployment is not the only issue
Page 20 and 21: Overall, both official statistics a
Page 22 and 23: issues from the perspective of thes
Page 24 and 25: and facilitate integration and, equ
Page 26 and 27: Chapter 2Looking for work in Irelan
Page 28 and 29: and longer term aspirations with th
Page 30 and 31: In terms of public sector 6 employm
Page 32 and 33: immigrant communities have come to
Page 34 and 35: on courses they do not want to do a
Page 36 and 37: 2.6.1 Communication issuesAmong the
Page 40 and 41: • Freedom of movement for the cit
Page 42 and 43: • what they see as the reluctance
Page 44 and 45: are employed. By the end of the sec
Page 46 and 47: large organisations are more likely
Page 48 and 49: other occupations such as youth wor
Page 50 and 51: at 24 per cent (and just 22 per cen
Page 52 and 53: Other mechanisms to recruit foreign
Page 54 and 55: In large volume recruitment campaig
Page 56 and 57: Innovation in the use of testsIrish
Page 58 and 59: 3.2.7 VettingThe vetting of candida
Page 60 and 61: that considered foreign workers to
Page 62 and 63: Chapter 4Conclusions and Discussion
Page 64 and 65: of recruitment should be more integ
Page 66 and 67: Table 4.1:Divergent views of Employ
Page 68 and 69: Perceive written andlanguage based
Page 70 and 71: as either a basis for determining e
Page 72 and 73: It is reasonable to assume that in
Page 74 and 75: Of more specific relevance to the c
Page 76 and 77: public sector employers) as well as
Page 78 and 79: BibliographyBarrett, A and Y McCart
Page 80: O’Connell, P and F McGinnity (200
Page 84: Public Appointments ServiceChapter

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