Social inspection services will conduct checks on new telecoms market player DIGI, De Tijd quotes the Federal Employment Department as saying on Tuesday.
DIGI Belgium is a joint venture between the Romanian group of the same name and Belgian group Citymesh. This fourth operator entered the Belgian market late last year with prices undercutting those of Proximus, Telenet, and Orange Belgium.
Since then, the working conditions of the employees setting up the DIGI network have been scrutinised. Het Laatste Nieuws daily interviewed 24 current and former employees and observed that the operator does not fully comply with safety standards.
DIGI has reportedly cut costs on safety and staff. Cheap labour from Romania is allegedly hired at minimum wage, with workers receiving a bonus if they install more than 300 metres of fibre per day. Additionally, some of DIGI’s network servers are reportedly located in the basement of a house where Romanian workers live, next to the laundry room.
The Federal Employment Department confirmed to De Tijd daily that social inspection services would carry out checks on the operator, in coordination with the Social Information and Research Service (SIRS). The information from the Het Laatste Nieuws article is “only one of the elements,” the department noted.
The Brussels labour auditor’s office said it had not opened an investigation into DIGI.
