CCOO detects around fifty undocumented Turkish workers at the Camp Nou construction site

BarcelonaMore labor irregularities at the Camp Nou renovation project. The CCOO union warned on Tuesday that in recent days, one of the subcontractors for the Turkish construction company Limak has dismissed 14 undocumented Turkish workers who were working on the renovation. According to the union, the company is getting rid of these employees as the work progresses so they can return to their country "without any guarantees." In other words, it is forcing them into expulsion. Furthermore, last month the union reported the presence of fifty workers with irregular immigration status to the Labor Inspectorate, and the labor police are currently conducting an investigation, the results of which are not yet known.

"These people, some of whom have been working on the construction sites for over a year, now face dismissal by Extreme Works and the construction company Limak, who intend to send them back to their country without any guarantees," protesters denounced at a morning demonstration. For months, the CCOO union has been assisting more than 50 Turkish workers, in coordination with the Turkish union DISK, and now they fear that these employees—who also suffer precarious working conditions and long hours—may be dismissed and sent back to their country.

For this reason, the union has demanded "commitment and involvement" from both FC Barcelona, as the project's promoter, and the Spanish Government Delegation, which has jurisdiction over immigration matters. In this regard, they demand the immediate reinstatement of the dismissed workers, social security contributions from their first day of work, payment of outstanding wages, and that the administration act ex officio and urgently process residence and work permits for all workers who can prove more than six months of employment on these projects.

Action by the Labor Inspectorate

When asked about the intervention of the Labor Inspectorate, the Secretary of Labor for the Catalan Government, Paco Ramos, warned this Tuesday that the labor inspectorate "will continue to act" at the Camp Nou construction site. In a press conference, he assured that the results of the complaint filed by the CCOO union will be ready in the coming weeks. In this regard, he emphasized that the Catalan administration will try to ensure that these irregularities "cannot be repeated." FC Barcelona points out that the majority of the nearly 3,500 workers who have mobilized regarding the Camp Nou construction are employed by subcontracted companies, "directly responsible for their labor relations," and that the club "maintains constant collaboration with Limak to guarantee absolute respect for labor rights and compliance."