The ITM carried out 185 checks during this year’s annual leave Romain Gamba / Maison Moderne

The ITM carried out 185 checks during this year’s annual leave Romain Gamba / Maison Moderne

The Inspectorate of Labour and Mines (ITM), which monitor workplace standards, closed more than a dozen construction sites and issued several fines during checks carried out carried out during this year’s collective leave between 30 July and 22 August.

Construction sites across the country were checked by the labour inspectorate and police to ensure the companies comply with the closure rules. The inspections also aim to make sure that safety regulations are being complied with. The ITM’s inspectors carried out a total of 185 checks on 155 construction sites operated by 115 companies.

As a result of the inspections, six construction sites were ordered to cease work because they were not authorised to work during the annual leave. Eight others were ordered to close as well due to security and safety regulations not being respected.

A fine of €7,500 was issued to one company for having employed three undocumented third-country nationals. Another employer was fined €2,500 for the same infraction concerning one undocumented employee. Six construction sites were ordered to stop work due to the presence of ten undocumented workers who also lacked a work permit.

The construction sector mostly shuts down every year for several weeks in the summer. This year 148 sites were granted exemptions from the annual break, for example to work on schools over the summer, on key infrastructure projects or to repair flood damage. Last year, the committee granted 119 requests to skip the annual holiday. This compared to 132 construction sites that stayed open in 2019.