Congress General Secretary David Begg said that Government must immediately close the "legal loophole" that allows employers to walk away and leave workers unpaid when a business runs into difficulty.
Referring to the ongoing dispute and occupation of Dublin's Paris Bakery, Mr Begg said: "We"ve been here before and will be again unless this legal loophole is closed and employers are obliged to honour their commitments and pay employees what they are due.
'the situation in Paris Bakery is history repeating itself. We"ve seen it in Vita Cortex, La Senza, HMV, Game, Thomas Cook and Connolly Shoes over the last number of years.
"Workers should not be forced to take this action to get what they are due," Mr Begg said.
Paris Bakery workers are demanding payment of wages of more than €55,000, owed to theM. A protest and occupation of the premises on Dublin's Moore Street was supported by trade unions, with Congress President and Mandate General Secretary John Douglas joining the protest for two nights.
'the problem lies with the fact that an "informal insolvency" - where an employer ceases trading but does not wind up the business - is not covered by existing law and, as a consequence, workers have no rights. Employers can and do simply walk away.
"In 2012, Congress made a submission to Government outlining how this could be remedied and the loophole closed. They need to act on this with urgency - this has happened once too often," Mr Begg said.
