Palermo, extensive control on the territory by the Labor Inspectorate to combat irregularities

The Carabinieri Labor Inspectorate of Palermo together with colleagues from the local Carabinieri Stations, in the municipalities of Balestrate, Ciminna, Terrasini, Monreale, Lascari, Bagheria, Misilmeri, Lercara Friddi, Trabia and Polizzi Generosa, in the first ten days of the month, They carried out numerous checks on construction sites with the primary objective of combating undeclared work and verifying compliance with worker safety and protection regulations, also in light of the legislation governing credit licenses for companies in the specific sector.

In fact, from 1 October 2024, the same is mandatory for all companies and workers operating within temporary or mobile construction sites and constitutes an element of evaluation of the tools adopted and their effectiveness in terms of safety at work; it will also be an element of evaluation in the case of participation in tenders, public calls for tenders and for the request of concessions and bonuses.

The operations consisted of surprise checks on construction sites, following some "alarm bells" received from the Carabinieri Stations which, during normal preventive services, had identified potential anomalies.

The construction sector is constantly monitored because it is highly employed and at greater risk of accidents at work.

During the operations, 28 companies were inspected, 68 workers were identified, 20 of whom were found to be "undeclared" and 2 in an irregular position, 6 measures were adopted for suspension of business activity for undeclared work and for serious violations in terms of safety in the workplace, administrative sanctions amounting to €153.508,00 and fines amounting to €133.753,00 were contested.

The inspection findings highlighted that the percentage of “undeclared” work currently stands at around 30% of the workforce employed and presents higher percentages in the private construction sector.

In terms of workplace safety, the main violations identified concern scaffolding, medical visits, personal protective equipment, training and information for workers on how to carry out their duties safely.

The service did not only want to repress irregular conduct but also to demonstrate closeness to businesses, making them aware of working "regularly", precisely because the legislation is very complex but certainly aimed at protecting businesses and workers.

In the context of the inspection, the new regulatory provisions on the credit license, an obligation for companies operating within construction sites, were verified, and two companies found to be lacking them.

Fines have been imposed on the clients of the works, on the professional consultants of the companies, in particular on those who hold the position of safety coordinator for the execution of the works, a figure who is required to verify the application by the executing companies of the provisions for the prevention of accidents and who must carry out an effective control activity on the related work, being able to order the suspension of the works in the event of non-compliance with the precautionary rules. Consequently, communications have also been submitted to the municipal technical offices for the suspension of the enabling titles (construction permits) in those construction sites without safety plans.

Continuous monitoring to combat “black” work and to minimize the sad phenomenon of “white” deaths will be carried out in the future through similar activities coordinated between the territorial force, the Labor Inspectorate Unit and the Operational Unit of the Labor Protection Group of Palermo.