The Labor Inspectorate raided employment agency Reyhan in Gelderse ‘s-Heerenberg on Wednesday and arrested two employees of the company. That’s what sources around the research say to NRC. An administration office in nearby Ulft, which is responsible for Reyhan’s administration, and a house in Doetinchem were also searched.
The raid is part of an investigation by the functional public prosecutor’s office of the Public Prosecution Service. The temporary employment agency is suspected of forgery and embezzlement, for which the judge can impose a prison sentence of three to a maximum of six years. The Labor Inspectorate suspects that employees of the employment agency were not paid the agreed wages and that their signatures were forged.
A manager of Reyhan acknowledges that the Labor Inspectorate visited the office in ‘s-Heerenberg on Wednesday. He does not want to say what the Labor Inspectorate has taken.
Attempted assault
At the end of last year, a manager of Reyhan was convicted of attempted aggravated assault. A Romanian staff member of the Gelderland employment agency was beaten and kicked several times with reinforced shoes, while he was defenseless and did not use violence himself. The man did his story this month NRC. The manager was sentenced to 90 days in prison, of which 73 conditional, 180 hours of community service and the Romanian staff member had to pay compensation of 1,500 euros.
Published last week NRC an investigation into employment agency Reyhan. The company was founded in 2008. About 1,500 people, mainly migrant workers, have been seconded via Reyhan to Dutch meat processing companies.
Internal reports to the Labor Inspectorate, stories from (former) employees, municipal officials, government sources and employees of the FNV trade union show that fear dominates around the employment agency. Complaining employees are fired or even mistreated. Municipalities are powerless against the company, because the penalties they impose on the company do not make an impression. And union workers fear the company since the mistreatment of Romanian migrant workers.
Also read the research story about Reyhan: Working in the flesh – whoever complains is fired, or mistreated
Criminal investigation
The Labor Inspectorate raided the employment agency on Wednesday because of a criminal investigation by the Public Prosecution Service. Three buildings have been searched. Physical and digital data, cash and valuables have been seized, among other things. Several company cars were also searched.
The investigation started after previous checks at the temporary employment agency. The Labor Inspectorate imposed fines several times. In 2017, the temporary employment agency was fined 11,500 euros, because 21 temporary workers had been paid in cash. And in 2018, inspectors encountered “foreigners” who had no papers to work in the Netherlands at meat processor Vitelco in Den Bosch. Reyhan, who had arranged the staff, and Vitelco were both fined 8,000 euros.
Municipalities are also concerned about the temporary employment agency. In Brabant, the municipality of Meierijstad (Schijndel, Sint-Oedenrode, Veghel) reported to the Labor Inspectorate that Reyhan would house “persons illegally”. The Meierijstad official also feared ‘exploitation’ of employees.
In 2019, the municipality of Montferland received complaints about a corner building in ‘s-Heerenberg that had been converted into a migrant worker hotel with 22 beds. The municipality had the building evacuated because it was unhygienic and unsafe. When another check was carried out a few weeks later, it was wrong again: there were nine people in the building that is intended for one household. The municipality imposed a penalty of 50,000 euros on Reyhan, which has since been converted into a fine. According to the municipality of Montferland, this has not been paid. Reyhan has appealed the fine to the Council of State. The proceedings are still ongoing.
To increase the pressure, the municipality of Montferland has increased the penalty payment to 200,000 euros per week, with a maximum of 600,000 euros.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of January 27, 2022