Delhaize supermarket chain has been found not guilty of any criminal offences in their restructuring process initiated in March 2023, which included transferring 128 stores to independent franchisees.
The ruling was announced by the Halle-Vilvoorde labour auditorium on Monday after the socialist union ABVV/BBTK had filed a complaint against Delhaize last year.
Following an investigation, the labour auditors have now dropped the case.
Delhaize revealed its franchising plans for 128 integrated supermarkets in March. This triggered vehement objections from trade unions, with a complaint lodged by the socialist union (BBTK/ABVV) on 3 April 2023.
The ABVV accused Delhaize of obstructing the workings of the company council. They argued Delhaize disregarded its mandatory information delivery during a restructuring and collective dismissal. The supermarket chain was also criticised for not upholding obligatory notices about collective redundancy.
"The complaint was thoroughly examined by the appropriate specialised social inspection service, under the supervision of the Halle-Vilvoorde labour auditorium," stated the labour auditorium.
"This detailed investigation revealed no punishable acts regarding the four alleged breaches. The case was consequently processed by the labour auditorium with no prosecution. The parties were informed of this outcome today."
The management of Delhaize reacted with satisfaction to the announcement by the labour audit. "We have always said that we have followed the rules of social dialogue to the letter," said a Delhaize spokesperson. "We are pleased that the labour audit has confirmed this."
Last week, unions raised the alarm on the situation inside newly franchised supermarkets, which Delhaize pushed back on claiming it amounted to disinformation.
ABVV shared the feedback from its delegates at the franchised stores. "So far, it is not good news."
"Employment is being phased out, job quality is declining and pressure on transferred staff is increasing," said the union representative.
"In many shops, we receive reports of delays or errors in the payment of wages and social security documents. Two months after the transfer, some workers have still not received a pay slip or performance review and see a shortfall in their bank accounts," he added.
