Maximum awards to Zimbabwean care workers left in poverty when promised jobs fell through

Eight healthcare workers from Zimbabwe have been awarded €30,420 each by the Workplace Relations Commission following a finding that Unity Healthcare Services Ltd failed to pay their wages over a six-month period. The adjudicator described the non-payment as "particularly egregious" and noted it was "exacerbated by repeated empty promises of payment". The workers, who were recruited in 2022 and 2023, paid substantial fees ranging from €2,000 to €3,600 and travelled to Ireland expecting employment at a care facility planned for Virginia, County Cavan. The facility's opening was delayed indefinitely, leaving the eight staff members without work or consistent income. Several lived communally in a staff house in poor conditions whilst awaiting employment that never materialised. The Migrant Rights Centre Ireland, which represented the workers, has called for stronger State protections and deterrents, including criminal charges and permit bans for exploitative employers. A ninth worker is pursuing a related claim.