The National Police of Valladolid arrested a businessman from the agricultural sector for exploiting illegal foreigners as labor in the fields. The workers were in conditions of semi-slavery and worked, from Monday to Sunday, ten hours a day, whether they were sick or not, under the false promise of a contract to regularize their situation. They charged seven euros per hour but deducted 200 euros per person for accommodation and 2.50 euros per day for transportation..
Following the information received and thanks to the collaboration with the Labor and Social Security Inspectorate of Valladolid, an investigation was opened in which a Spanish businessman was detected, dedicated to the exploitation of agricultural properties for third parties, providing labor for agricultural work. .
The National Police carried out various operational investigations which confirmed the existence of at least four workers, in situations of need and vulnerability, who had been exploited at work by the detained businessman.
In this context, a joint inspection action was carried out with the Provincial Labor and Social Security Inspectorate of Valladolid and was located five workers on the inmate’s agricultural farmsor in an irregular administrative situation and in abusive conditions which border on semi-slavery.
The employer forced these people to work more than ten hours a day from Monday to Sunday, without the right to breaks or days off. In addition, they were forced to work even if they were sick, did not have an employment contract and were registered with Social Security, for a salary of seven euros per hour.
The investigation revealed that this agricultural entrepreneur had foreign workers in an irregular administrative situation as his workforce, who deceived them with false promises of a long-term employment contract that would allow them to regularize their situation in Spain and which was never made official, despite the fact that they had been providing services to the detainee for several years.
The investigation sources indicated, as stated by Ical, that the exploited workers They also have dependent family members who depend on them financially.they were therefore forced to accept the abusive and disproportionate working conditions imposed on them.
The detained businessman also provided them with accommodation and transportation to the countryside, for which they had to hand over different amounts of money as compensation. Thus, on a salary of seven euros per hour, they deduct 200 euros per month per person to accommodate them in dilapidated, unsanitary, damp accommodation, infested with insects and lacking hot water and heating, up to 15 people stay overnight in high season. Additionally, they deducted 2.50 euros per day per person for transportation.
Despite the fact that it was a negligible salary and that, due to the lack of compulsory contributions and taxes, the businessman increased his personal profit exponentially, he was unable to pay the day laborers what was due to them, because The expenses related to the management of the so-called employment contract had not been paid to them for several months. that the businessman was going to provide them to regularize their situation in Spain.
The police operation is called “OP. BACO”, culminates with the arrest of the person indicted.
