When we look a few years down the road, today's workplace will bear little resemblance to that which lies ahead. Two major forces will drive this change - the impact of technology and the growing number of positions held by non-nationals.

The Government recently announced the development of a national immigration policy. Such a policy is needed since the Government estimates that to meet the targets set out in the National Development plan, almost 340,000 people will have to immigrate into Ireland between now and 2006.

While many of these people will be returning emigrants, a substantial number will come from countries with traditions and cultures very different from our own.

Of course we will have people coming to our shores from the US, Canada and Australia. However you may be surprised to know that in 2000, the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment approved more than 18,000 work permits to people from 120 countries. This compares with just over 6,000 work permits in 1999.

The highest number of permits approved were in respect of people from Latvia. However, a significant number was also approved for people from Indonesia, Brazil, the Czech Republic, South Africa, Russia, the Philippines, Poland and Malaysia.

This influx will raise important issues for all of us, not alone in the context of the workplace. While welcoming the development of an immigration policy, IBEC is concerned as to whether we are in a position to accommodate 340,000 additional people over the next six years.

Have we the infrastructure to cope with the arrival of such a large group of people? With our housing, health and education services already facing capacity overflow, what steps have been taken to allow for the orderly integration of more than 300,000 people in a relatively short period of time?

In relation to our attitudes and prejudices, one would have to be concerned as to how as individuals we will we react if a school place or a hospital bed or a position on the housing list goes to someone from another country.

There is increasing evidence of a growing number of racist attacks in Ireland, which raises very serious issues for Government, policy-makers, employers, employees and society in general.

IBEC very much welcomes the Government's announcement of a major public information campaign to tackle racism and urges that this initiative begin as a matter of urgency.

Apart from the social issues, there is a very strong economic and business case for ensuring the workplace is free from racism. At present 6 per cent of jobs in Ireland are vacant. While there will always be vacancies in any economy, the 6 per cent level and the fact that companies are reporting that they are finding 50 per cent of the vacancies difficult to fill are worrying.

Companies are increasingly looking beyond these shores to fill these vacancies, hence the importance of ensuring the workplace is anti-racist.

Last December, IBEC, in association with Interact Ireland, launched a major survey into the experiences of employers and refugees in the workforce. Language difficulties were the biggest single barrier to employers recruiting non-EU nationals, while bureaucratic and cultural difficulties were also cited as significant factors.

Refugees who had found employment said the biggest barriers to employment were racism, lack of appropriate skills and verification of qualifications. However, the vast majority of employers and employees had found working with non-EU nationals a positive experience.

The issues to which I have referred represent huge challenges and, as in many other challenges we have faced through our history, we are much more likely to meet them successfully by working together in partnership rather than as individuals.

The recent anti-racist workplace week organised by the Equality Authority in conjunction with IBEC, ICTU and the Construction Industry Federation is an example of key organisations working together to create a better environment for tomorrow's workforce. IBEC is aware of many companies who have positive integration policies for their new employees from overseas. However, for many companies, and in particular smaller companies, it will be a relatively new experience.

The workplace initiative was primarily aimed at ensuring that we have in place the support mechanisms to assist the development of an anti-racist workplace. The broader question of how we deal with racism represents an opportunity for Ireland to show that as a country we are capable of meeting new challenges in a responsible and progressive manner.

There is little doubt that if Ireland develops a reputation as a racist country, it will deter people coming here and will affect our ability to make further economic and social progress.

We already have some evidence of people leaving Ireland as a result of racist attacks and were this situation to continue, our attractiveness as a work location would be severely impaired.

Brendan Butler is director of social policy at IBEC.