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28. 06. 12. - 11:35
Crackdown on illegal building workers
Building inspectors in the capital Vienna are having a crackdown on illegal workers on building sites.
They warn that there will be no exceptions in the current crackdown and anybody caught breaching laws will be taken to court with heavy fines or possibly even a jail term for those convicted.
And officials have warned it's not just big building sites that will be taken in hand – they are also tackling those hiring illegal labourers to do small tasks on their flats or house from painting the walls through to other minor tasks.
Building control councillor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) said they will also be looking at the legality of the firms carrying out the building operations.
He said the first two waves of the crackdown had already uncovered a number of breaches of the regulations. At the first building site one of 10 firms was suspected of failing to pay various fees and taxes and social insurance premiums. That involved more than 60 people. He said another 25 sub firms were currently being checked.
On a second building site also various investigations are going on following a swoop to identify who was working there. There is a suspicion that at least 14 people had fake paperwork and were not properly registered.
He said that the black sheep of the building branch needed to be punished with the full strength of the law. He added that they damage not just the quality of the city's building stock with substandard work but also the workers whom they exploit who are not properly covered and they also threatened genuine firms by taking away their business.
The crackdown is being carried out by the building police, finance police and foreign police as well as various others, all co-ordinated by the city of Vienna.
