Are there any situations where an employer requests that the employee pays their (i.e. employer's) share of PRSI contributions? Have heard of a situation where it's happening and sounds unusual to me.
...and if the employee is paying the employer's contributions, and the employer insists it's in their rights, what should they do? Report them to the tax office?
Social welfare office will take their details and should investigate. To be honest I have gone to SW with someone whos P60 did not match their employers P35 return. SW there all interested (that the paper P60s we had did not match what was on their screens) and did investigate, at the end of the day not much happened, the accountants were blamed for making a mistakes on the returns. The fact at half a dozen of the employees were not even on the books was never discovered! This was going on in the company for years.
why is the employee paying the employers prsi contributions in the first place and in the second place employers prsi is to do with social welfare so you report it to them