Nearly 75% of companies inspected during Belgium's lockdown were breaking precautionary rules, Le Soir reported on Friday.
When the Belgian government introduced its far-reaching measures to combat the new coronavirus (Covid-19) in March, it stressed that working from home would become the norm. In cases where teleworking would not be possible, the employer would have to comply with all safety regulations.
Belgium's labour inspectorate carried out 1,142 remote checks between 23 March and 30 April. Of these checks, 986 (86.34%) involved a visit from the inspectorate.
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Of these visits, 74.65% resulted in a warning. The penalty was limited to this warning for 606 infringements, while 88 companies were given a deadline for compliance and in eight cases a summons was issued to management. Finally, 34 of them had to close.
While these figures may seem low given the high number of companies in Belgium, it must be kept in mind that many companies were not working during this period, Le Soir commented.
Since 4 May, Belgium has started to phase out of its lockdown, with companies being allowed to open their doors again. However, teleworking remains the norm. Shops will be allowed to reopen from 11 May.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
