Dutch executives suspected of exploiting migrant workers in Germany

The German police and justice system suspect two executives of a Dutch employment agency of housing mostly Romanian workers in run-down and neglected accommodations at exorbitant rents, the German police said on Sunday afternoon. The report came after the police carried out searches in eight buildings that are rented out by the Dutch agency to Eastern European migrant workers in the Kleve region, near Nijmegen.

According to the German justice system, the Dutch suspects abused the precarious financial situation of the Romanian workers. They also took advantage of the workers' lack of language knowledge. As a result, according to the German justice system, the migrant workers had no other option but to agree to the accommodation offered to them at rents that were far too high.

The justice system and police started to have the living space of the Romanians checked by an expert in the field of construction and housing supervision on Sunday. All those involved are also being interviewed and evidence is being collected.

German government agencies also checked six large shelters for migrant workers in Geldern and Emmerich in mid-February, which concerned Bulgarians and Romanians who worked in the Dutch meat industry. The fire safety in the controlled accommodations in Geldern and Emmerich was insufficient, there was mold growth, missing electrical facilities and other structural defects.

According to the government of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Dutch employment agencies abuse the different legislation in the Netherlands and Germany. The restrictions that apply in the Netherlands, such as maximum rent and decent living conditions, do not apply in Germany, according to the federal government in Düsseldorf.