From workers who transform into bathers once the controllers appear, to employees which... are upgraded to «persons responsible» any possible section or hide in coffins and refrigerators, reality proves to be more imaginative than a comedy script. Only here the laughter stops when workers' rights are violated.
These are some practices that some employers use to bypass the Digital Work Card and Labour Inspection checks.
Labour Inspectorate checks, according to ERT's report, have intensified ahead of the summer period, particularly in tourist areas, and with them practices are revealed that remind more... of a game of hidden than legitimate business operation.
The most widespread «patent» It's the mass baptism of employees in... in charge. In a supermarket check, almost every employee appeared as head of a department: head of sausages, cashiers, stationery, corridors. In practice, however, everyone performed normal duties as an employee.
In beach bars, again, the show changes scenery. With the look of the inspectors, the records disappear, the waiters catch a deckchair or take a quick dive and suddenly turn into... relaxed customers. On one occasion, the owner took over the service himself, while the worker serving a few seconds ago enjoyed – supposedly – his bathroom.
Not even his known alibi is missing... «I came earlier for a coffee.». Workers are at the site an hour before the start of their shift and, if a check appears, claim they were just waiting loosely. The inspectors, of course, are hardly convinced when «coffee» accompanied by records, orders or cashier.
And if all the above sounds too much, the next is beyond imagination. According to the incidents that have been recorded, timber workers were allegedly invited to hide inside... coffins during inspection. In another business, workers were spotted within coolant chambers, while in a clothing store they were locked in the dressing rooms until the auditors left.
Ingenuity can cause smiles, but the stakes are not only funny. These practices aim to bypass the digital work card, hide undeclared or implied work and avoid the planned fines. And as much as they remind scenes of Greek comedy, for auditors they are daily cases that result in serious violations and sanctions.
