After inspecting 14 construction sites in Bansko on July 26, the Labour and Social Policy Ministry suspended work on four of them and ordered various building equipment to cease operating because of safety concerns, Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) reported.

The ministry found workers from 13 companies on the sites and demanded all necessary paperwork showing compliance with the state’s labour and work safety regulations to be submitted by July 31.  

During its inspection, the ministry registered various safety violations such as unguarded openings and staircases, dangerous pits, makeshift electrical control panels and exposed feeder cables as well as equipment with unguarded rotating and moving parts.

A particularly common labour law offence is that of companies hiring workers without offering them employment contracts or national insurance. During the mass check six employees were found without contracts. On the site, inspectors also fined some of the workers for not using helmets. 

It remains to be seen what is the status of five workers, all Chinese citizens, who were discovered fitting a lift in a residential building in Bansko. Inquires have been sent to the Ministry of Interior and the National Employment Agency (NEA).

As of now, it has been determined that the workers belong to a group of specialists whose job includes the fitting of 45 lifts in hotels owned by a Bulgarian company.

Employed by a Chinese firm, the workers had been sent on a three-month business trip to provide the services agreed upon by the two sides.

It would be deemed a labour law violation if the Chinese citizens were not registered at the NEA as temporary employed personnel.