Ghent revealed as a major hub for the social exploitation of Bulgarians

"It is becoming increasingly difficult for us to detect social exploitation," says Filiep De Ketelaere. He is a labour auditor and sees abuse among eastern Europeans soaring in Ghent. "There are Turkish and Bulgarian gangs operating in the city, serving the whole of Belgium providing illegal workers. They make big money out of it. It is laundered through real estate investments or transfers abroad."

De Ketelaere sees different types of abuse. "Malpractices are becoming ever more serious. Sometimes people are hired part-time but work full time. Sometimes they sign on or are on sick leave while they are actually working. There are also systems with mail box companies abroad and sham self-employment."

"A lot of gangmasters are operating in Ghent. They recruit people in cafés and the like, often finding Eastern Europeans hoping for a better life," De Ketelaere explains. Some end up in the meat industry or the construction sector.

Rumen is one such person. He came to Belgium several years ago hoping to find work. "I come from a very poor region in Bulgaria where life was hard. Very quickly I found a job in Ghent through an acquaintance. I was immediately allowed to work in construction and was also given a small room where I could sleep. I signed a contract and went to work full-time," the man testified. "I thought everything was fine."

Rumen received 50 euros a week from his employer. "I couldn't live on it; I had no money to pay for food. In the long run, all my clothes and shoes were worn out. I couldn't go on like this and so I quit. I was evicted from the small room, which is how I ended up on the street."

Rumen survived by doing demolition work here and there. Sometimes he was paid, other times not. Not until a Bulgarian family took him in and got him a permanent address did the real trouble start. "Suddenly I got letters that I had to pay thousands of euros in social security arrears, being self-employed. I didn’t know what they were talking about."

Rumen is not an isolated case. At the job mediation agency VDAB and the Ghent Jobteam, they regularly see east Europeans, especially Bulgarians, who have been exploited for years. "Many people first end up in the black economy, simply because it is a quick way to get money to survive," says Kristof D'Haese of the Jobteam.

"These are mostly people who were also vulnerable in their own country, from ethnic-cultural minorities," explains Aneta Filipova. She is a key person and has been active in the Bulgarian community for more than 10 years. "These are low-skilled people who sometimes cannot even read or write. They depend entirely on what they are told." Rumen himself still knows many people in precarious situations. "There are people who are homeless, and barely have anything. They eat from the bins."

Omerta

Charity SAAMO Gent works with vulnerable groups and sees that victims often realise too late that they are being exploited. "There is also a lot of shame. There is an omerta, a duty of silence. Victims are afraid to seek help because they are often very dependent on the people who exploit them," says Stéphanie Staïesse of the non-profit organisation.

It almost never happens that victims file a complaint or collect evidence. Rumen is also afraid of the people who gave him work before. "I don't get out much anymore. It's a real mafia. I only speak to my contacts at the Job team. They help me now. And, I am learning Dutch," he says. The man is following a pathway for illiterates. "It is difficult, I am trying my best."

The fear is not entirely unjustified. "There are cases we know of where victims are extorted and threatened," says D'Haese. "The impact is often huge and drags on for years. We are now helping someone who will have to pay off debts for 20 years." D'Haese stresses that city authorities cannot easily intervene, especially as cases only come to light much later. "We are also committed to helping them get a real, official job."

"Indeed, we see that few people want to talk," De Ketelaere agrees. " During inspections by social inspection we notice that workers are very well briefed and always reel off the same wording. The gangsters are becoming more inventive and know how to get around us better and better." The Labour prosecutor’s office points to increasingly complex constructions with subcontractors working for each other. "We sometimes have to take a very careful look to figure things out," they say.

Clearer rules for sectors

In Ghent charity Labo VZW is taking action on critical citizenship and previously organised a panel discussion on intra-European migrants. "What is very striking is that among this group of people, especially Bulgarians, there is a great will to work hard," says former employee Elka Dencheva. It often involves jobs that other workers do not want to do. "These are jobs on the occupation shortage list. The gangmasters manage to find workers that traditional employers can’t find. Why is that? We should ask the question: how is this possible," says labour auditor De Ketelaere. He advocates much clearer rules for certain sectors, such as the meat industry.

"Steps have already been taken, but things just need to be much better. Companies working with subcontractors are also involved in malpractices. If there are too many intermediaries, clients should help to check that everything is done legally. Today clients sometimes still claim that they knew nothing about it, even though things often happen that raise questions."

Better registration

De Ketelaere thinks governments should improve the registration of people who live in towns and cities. "Today people still stay under the radar. In principle, Europeans do have to register with the municipal authorities. Those who fail to do so risk a very light penalty. Alarm bells should go off if 30 people live at one address. There should also be better checks of the addresses entered into the electronic database Dimona."

De Ketelaere also advocates being able to hold the people who commission the gangmasters liable for social debts. "Today, although companies are shut down, the same practices continue with the same people using new companies. Debts are left unpaid following bankruptcies."