The nationwide expansion of Gigabit-compatible internet connections throughout Austria is in full swing. With funding of around 1.4 billion euros, the federal government wants to ensure that all states can benefit from fast internet by 2030. Private providers are also investing heavily. But when large sums of money are involved, criminals are often not far away…
Perpetrators are trying to illegally participate in the expansion of broadband in Austria. But the financial police reacted quickly and have already carried out the first successful checks to put an end to these illegal practices.
Consistently prevent illegal practices
“Broadband expansion is one of the central measures of our digitalization strategy. It lays the foundation for economic progress and quality of life throughout Austria. “It is all the more important that we consistently prevent illegal practices that endanger this progress,” announced Finance Minister Magnus Brunner.
“We received information from our German colleagues from the financial control department for undeclared work that black sheep had crept into the construction work for the broadband expansion. Unfortunately, this indication has also been confirmed in Austria,” says Wilfried Lehner, head of the financial police. Violations were brought to light in various regions in Lower Austria, where illegal practices such as wage and social dumping and violations of the Foreign Employment Act were detected. A total of 34 employees from seven companies were checked.
No registration and payroll documents
In particular, cases where companies were unable to provide secondment reports or were missing registration and payroll documents were common. What was also noticeable was the outsourcing of assignments via multiple subcontractors, some of which were not operationally active.
In Tyrol, a construction site was closed after an inspection found ten workers who were unable to provide the necessary employment law documents. The district administration has withdrawn the construction announcement and further investigations are underway. The financial police remain vigilant and will continue to take tough measures against abuses to ensure that the expansion of broadband in Austria proceeds without criminal activity.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
