The FOD social inspectorate, together with police officers, raided the depot of parcel company GLS in Puurs-Sint-Amands, Belgium, on Wednesday morning according to local news portal De Tijd.
About 40 infringements were identified in just a couple of hours. As a consequence, FOD labour prosecutor Gianni Reale ordered to the facility to be closed down.
FOD (Federale Overheidsdienst Werkgelegenheid, Arbeid en Sociaal Overleg) is a federal public service in Belgium that was created in 2002 to ensure the protection and promotion of occupational well-being, and to participate in the development of social legislation.
This is the third inspection to take place this autumn at a parcel carrier’s depot in Belgium – both PostNL and DPD were recently raided too. Officers found more than 20 infringements at two PostNL depots on 22 November – most of them were related to part-time work schedules and undeclared work.
Similar issues were found at several DPD depots the next day, although these places weren’t closed down, states a report by vrt.be
The problem with the courier companies seems is said to be mainly about the subcontracting systems they deploy. These smaller, often one-man companies deliver parcels on behalf of the big names, but they receive less and less money and time for this, argue trade unions.
“The infringements are a recurring phenomenon and indicate a real problem with those courier companies. We will have to continue to carry out checks,” says Gianni Reale.
Postal Minister Petra De Sutter has already indicated that she wants a change in how work is carried out so that large companies would have to employ at least some of the delivery staff themselves.