Arrested a textile entrepreneur in Alicante for forcing his employees to work on a piece of 400 euros per month

Un empresario marroquí de 44 años había conseguido crear un importante negocio de reciclaje de ropa usada en Cocentaina (Alicante), una ciudad industrial en la montaña del interior de Alicante. La firma textil se había convertido en una de las más importantes del sector en España. Sin embargo, su estructura legal y perfectamente organizada ocultaba la existencia de tres naves industriales en la que trabajaban al menos 15 empleados marroquíes, 12 horas al día y seis días a la semana, en condiciones precarias, sin contrato laboral y, en cuatro casos, sin permiso de residencia ni trabajo. La Policía Nacional detuvo a principios de este mes al propietario de la compañía por un presunto delito contra los derechos de los trabajadores, según ha dado a conocer este miércoles el organismo.

The main business nave worked at full performance.But a few months ago, a chivatazo originated an investigation that led to the location of three clandestine industrial ships, aimed at nourishing of textile material not declared to the company's matrix.Three barely conditioned facilities, without windows or other type of ventilation, or any tamping of any occupational risk prevention or against COVID, which were also crowded with mountains of used clothes.In those facilities the employees were "locked all day", from early in the morning, the police recounts.Its mission: "Recycling work in dangerous health conditions," the same sources point out.

Once the ships have been detected, agents of several units of the Alcoy Police Station (Alicante), along with another attached to the Generalitat Valenciana and Alicante's Labor Inspection broke out inside."Some of the workers tried to flee to the race, while others began to hide among the mountains of clothing so as not to be located," the same sources point out.They tried to hide unsuccessfully: the 15 employees were intercepted and, later, it was found that none had an employment contract and that four of them were in Spain in an irregular situation.

By taking a statement, the workers said they made 12 -hour daily days with a single day of rest a week, for 400 euros per month, "less than half of the minimum interprofessional salary", as the sources consulted remember.The four employees who lacked residence and work permits were arrested to open an administrative procedure due to the violation of the Irregular Stay, and they were released within a few hours.

At the beginning of this month, the agents arrested the employer as alleged responsible for the clandestine organization of their company and the precarious employment situation of their employees.Until now, he had managed to hide his clandestine businesses, since he had no previous history related to possible labor irregularities, the police indicate.Judged to the imputation of a crime against workers' rights.