State action to tackle bogus self-employment is “insufficient everywhere,” including at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), according to Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) general secretary Patricia King.

She was speaking as representatives from ICTU and the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) gave evidence to the joint Oireachtas committee on employment affairs and social protection recently.

Ms King said bogus self-employment was costing the exchequer, with €240 million worth of PRSI and tax receipts lost in the construction sector alone.

The committee also heard that talks between RTÉ and the NUJ on the status of over 100 contractors working at the national broadcaster were “tortuous,” in the words of NUJ general secretary Séamus Dooley. The NUJ met RTÉ on the issue again last Friday.

The term ‘bogus self-employment’ refers to situations where workers who should be classified as employees are marked as self-employed. By classifying these workers as self-employed, employers can avoid having to pay PRSI and sick pay.