Au pair agencies have called for a greater regulation of the sector to avoid exploitation of au pairs. They have also warned against the growing practice of recruiting au pairs from the Internet.
Ms Kathy O'Dwyer, Irish executive committee member of the International Au Pair Association, said there were no controls on the sector in this State.
"Anyone could set up an au pair agency in their front room," she said. While agencies recruiting au pairs had to have a licence, there were no other controls over the sector. This was bad for au pairs and host families, she said.
In contrast, the United States had an extremely well-regulated sector, with detailed security checks, references and interviews before placements. Arrangements between au pairs and families were forbidden without the involvement of a third party. "It should be the same here," she said.
Ms O'Dwyer was speaking at the International Au Pair Association's annual conference, which opened in Dublin yesterday.
The association represents 153 organisations in 44 countries. About 5,000 au pairs aged between 18 and 26 come to this State every year to live with families and help look after their children.
Ms O'Dwyer said the au pair industry was primarily about "cultural exchange" and was not a cheap form of labour. "We won't service a client if they expect a replacement housekeeper or replacement nanny."
She said recruiting au pairs directly from the Internet was "a real threat" for au pairs and the host families. Neither party knew anything about each other, and au pair agencies often had to pick up the pieces when things went badly wrong, she said.
The International Au Pair Association was set up in 1994 to "self-regulate" the industry, Ms O'Dwyer said. A European agreement on the regulation of the au pair sector was never signed into law, she said.
Prof Gary Weaver, a US expert on multiculturalism, told the conference that cultural exchange experiences were crucial because of the growing multiculturalism in the world.
Far from taking away au pairs' sense of nationality, the experience usually heightened their consciousness of their own culture, Prof Weaver said.
