Belgian labour inspectors have checked 174 dubious businesses in big cities so far this year and found that 98 of their 214 workers were not employed using the proper procedures, including 34 who were undeclared. Fifteen of the workers were undocumented immigrants and one employer has been charged with human trafficking.
The figures were provided by the Secretary of State in charge of the fight against labour fraud, Philippe De Backer of the Open Vld Party. De Backer has asked the labour inspection services to carry out at least 200 checks in dubious businesses countrywide this year.
"These shady businesses, which mar commercial streets, must disappear from the landscape,” De Backer said, “In the big cities, they are often just the tip of the iceberg, fronts for money laundering, drug trafficking and even terrorism,” he charged.
The Brussels Times
