” “” ” ” ” ” “A Directive to fight off-the-book work for illegal immigrants. It was submitted in Brussels yesterday by the European Commission asking for consistent, stricter fines to be introduced in the 27 EU member states for employers who exploit off-the-book labour. "The near certainly of finding illegal work in the EU member states stated Franco Frattini, deputy president of the EU Commission in charge of the ‘Justice, Freedom and Security’ portfolio is the main driver of illegal immigration from the third countries". But the dream of a job, he added, "can turn into the hard reality of exploitation, with conditions that are nearly like slavery, such as the total lack of any protection on building sites or in the use of hazardous pesticides, or working 12 to 16 hours daily, sometimes for as little as 30 euros". In addition, off-the-book work is a plague "that is closely associated with the tragic trips, often organised by traffickers, that cause the death of 3-4,000 people every year as they try to illegally reach Europe". (continued)” “” “” “
