The company Carestel manages the motorway services in the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium. It concluded a contract with the company Kronos, based in Germany, concerning the cleaning of the toilets on the motorway rest area. Kronos is responsible for hiring and managing the employees cleaning the toilets.
Several inspections led by the labour inspection services found that the people working in the toilets were working sometimes 15 hours per day, 7 days a week, and received a very small salary. The employees were all foreign nationals, with no knowledge of the Dutch language, most of them coming from eastern Europe. They had signed a contract with Kronos that they were not able to understand, most of them were not able to say whether they were working as employees or as independent workers.
Kronos organised its activities so that employees were living in a house belonging to the company, someone from Kronos would drive each of the employees to a rest area in the morning and pick them up in the evening. The employees took a few cents from each client going into the toilets, and put the money in a safe. An employee from Kronos came every week or several times a week to take the money.
Belgique
Allemagne1st Instance:
Court: First Instance Court of Gent, 19th chamber (Tribunal de 1ère Instance de Gand, 19ème chambre)
Location: Gent
Date of decision: 5 November 2012
Reference: 2012/3925
The victims did not appear in the trial, only the public prosecutor brought charges against the defendats
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
The defendant was charged as a servant or agent of the legal entity Kronos Sanitärservice GMBH
Kronos was charged as the employer or its representative and legal person
Carestel was charged as author of the infraction in the sense of article 66 of the penal code, for having executed the offense, having cooperated directly to its execution, or having helped in the commission of the offense in such a way that, without the accused, the infraction would not have been committed
Regarding the charge of trafficking in human beings: the Court considered that the mere fact that the employees worked 15 hours per day, 7 days a week for several weeks in a row was enough to find the defendants guilty of trafficking in human beings
Article 12 of the Law of 30 April 1999 on Employment of Foreign Workers
Article 4 to 8 and 9 bis of the Royal Decree of 5 November 2002
Article 139 al1 chapter 8 title 4 of the Law of 27 December 2006
Article 433 quinquies 1, 3° of the Penal Code
Articles 197, 213 and 214 of the Penal Code
Article 12 of the Law of 30 April 1999 on Employment of Foreign Workers
Article 4 to 8 and 9 bis of the Royal Decree of 5 November 2002
Article 139 al1 chapter 8 title 4 of the Law of 27 December 2006
Article 433 quinquies 1, 3° of the Penal Code
Articles 197, 213 and 214 of the Penal Code
Article 12 of the Law of 30 April 1999 on Employment of Foreign Workers
Article 4 to 8 and 9 bis of the Royal Decree of 5 November 2002
Article 139 al1 chapter 8 title 4 of the Law of 27 December 2006
Article 433 quinquies 1, 3° of the Penal Code
Articles 197, 213 and 214 of the Penal Code
Article 12 of the Law of 30 April 1999 on Employment of Foreign Workers
Article 4 to 8 and 9 bis of the Royal Decree of 5 November 2002
Article 139 al1 chapter 8 title 4 of the Law of 27 December 2006
Article 433 quinquies 1, 3° of the Penal Code
Articles 197, 213 and 214 of the Penal Code
Article 12 of the Law of 30 April 1999 on Employment of Foreign Workers
Article 4 to 8 and 9 bis of the Royal Decree of 5 November 2002
Article 139 al1 chapter 8 title 4 of the Law of 27 December 2006
Article 433 quinquies 1, 3° of the Penal Code
Articles 197, 213 and 214 of the Penal Code
Article 12 of the Law of 30 April 1999 on Employment of Foreign Workers
Article 433 quinquies 1, 3° of the Penal Code
Article 4 to 8 and 9 bis of the Royal Decree of 5 November 2002
Article 139 al1 chapter 8 title 4 of the Law of 27 December 2006
Articles 197, 213 and 214 of the Penal Code
Regarding the charge of trafficking in human beings: the Court considered that the mere fact that the employees worked 15 hours per day, 7 days a week for several weeks in a row was enough to find the defendants guilty of trafficking in human beings
First Instance Court of Gent, 19th chamber [Tribunal de Première Instance de Gand, 19ème chambre]
