Subcontractors working on Barcelona’s iconic Camp Nou renovation have accumulated nearly €1.87 million in fines and corrective orders following 218 labor fraud investigations by the Catalan Labor Inspectorate. Since work began in June 2023, authorities have uncovered systematic exploitation of 1,516 workers employed across 77 subcontractors, all operating under Turkish main contractor Limak Construction. The violations include unpaid wages, excessive working hours exceeding 10 hours daily, employment of undocumented foreign workers, and dismissals of employees who dared to defend their labor rights.
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The Scale of Labor Violations at Camp Nou
The violations include excessive working hours, unpaid wages, employment of undocumented foreign workers, and failure to fully meet safety standards affecting 1,516 workers across 77 subcontractors, all operating under Limak, a Turkish construction firm. According to official findings, 70% of the investigations led to formal warnings or penalties, with 129 financial sanctions issued amounting to €441,000, while authorities have demanded corrections worth €1.43 million.
Breakdown of Labor Violations and Penalties
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Total Investigations | 218 administrative proceedings |
| Companies Investigated | 77 subcontractors |
| Affected Workers | 1,516 employees |
| Financial Sanctions Issued | 129 (totaling €441,000) |
| Corrective Orders | Worth €1.43 million |
| Total Penalty Value | €1.87 million |
| Investigation Success Rate | 70% led to formal warnings or penalties |
Inspectors uncovered multiple instances of 16,000 unpaid overtime hours, workdays exceeding 10 hours, and pressure from supervisors. They also found wages below the minimum, lack of employment contracts, and dismissals of workers who tried to defend their rights—including laborers from Romania and Palestine. Some fines could reach €10,000 per worker, especially in cases involving undocumented labor, with additional penalties expected as new investigations continue.
Turkish Workers Without Documentation: The Latest Scandal
The most recent cases involve dozens of Turkish workers hired by subcontractor Extreme Works UAB. According to the trade union CCOO, these workers were employed without contracts or work permits, working 12-hour shifts, seven days a week, for around €2,000 per month—a sum roughly equivalent to the minimum wage once overtime is discounted. Several of them protested outside Camp Nou after 13 workers were dismissed verbally, without any documentation.
The company ordered them to return immediately to Turkey, promising to pay the outstanding wages upon arrival. The CCOO union warned this was a form of economic coercion, urging authorities to regularize their status under existing laws that protect workers who report illegal employment. Authorities have been monitoring the situation closely since September 2025, following complaints about approximately 50 undocumented Turkish workers on site.
The CCOO trade union has raised the alarm over the dismissal of undocumented Turkish workers at the Camp Nou construction site, employed by Ekstreme Works. According to the union, the subcontracted company for main contractor Limak has begun dismissing workers to send them back to their country without any guarantees now that construction is advancing. The union filed a complaint with the Labour Inspectorate in September over the presence of irregular workers, with investigation results still pending.
Systematic Exploitation: Testimonies From the Ground
Trade unions have labeled several subcontractors as pirate companies, repeatedly flagged in previous Labor Inspectorate reports. Workers from various nationalities have reported harrowing conditions that paint a disturbing picture of systematic exploitation beneath one of football’s most famous venues.
According to workers’ accounts documented by investigators, they were forced to work over ten hours a day, seven days a week, without proper breaks and without pay aligned with collective labor agreements. Many were paid below the legal minimum, and promises of overtime pay were left unfulfilled. Workers also claim they were threatened with dismissal if they raised any complaints.
Documented Working Conditions
| Violation Type | Specific Details |
|---|---|
| Unpaid Overtime | 16,000 hours neither paid, registered, nor compensated |
| Daily Work Hours | Exceeding 10 hours regularly |
| Weekly Schedule | 5-6 days per week without proper rest |
| Below Minimum Wage | Multiple workers paid less than legal minimum |
| Missing Contracts | Workers employed without formal documentation |
| Irregular Dismissals | Verbal terminations without legal procedures |
| Excessive Shifts | 12-hour shifts, seven days weekly for Turkish workers |
| Retaliation | Dismissals for workers asserting their rights |
One worker, who suffered a leg injury on site, reported being fired a month later without notice. Another stated he was told not to return after refusing to work extra hours. Reports mention Romanian and Palestinian workers being dismissed after demanding their workers’ rights, highlighting how the violations disproportionately affect vulnerable foreign workers.
Limak’s Silence and Barcelona’s Response
Limak, the constructora that won the project tender and holds subsidiary responsibility for everything occurring on site, has declined to comment when questioned about measures taken to prevent these repeated regulation violations. The Turkish construction firm, which received the lowest technical score among bidders but was awarded the contract based on an aggressive timeline promise, now faces mounting scrutiny over its oversight failures.
In a press statement, FC Barcelona said it maintains constant cooperation with Limak to ensure full compliance with labor laws and workers’ rights, though the club did not directly address the cases reported in the media. The club’s institutional vice president Elena Fort previously claimed they have no knowledge of any malpractice but would investigate the matter, suggesting there may have been mistakes but nothing more serious.
Minister of Business and Labor Miquel Sàmper has stated that irregularities in the Camp Nou construction are the responsibility of Limak and its subcontractors, not Barcelona. “It’s not appropriate to talk about Barça’s responsibility,” he said, though this position has been challenged by unions who argue the club bears oversight responsibility as the project promoter.
The Paradox: Safety Versus Labor Rights
Paradoxically, despite widespread labor abuses, accident rates on the site remain relatively low. As of September 1, 2025, there have been 340 incidents—339 classified as minor and only one as serious. For comparison, during the same period across all Catalan construction sites, 16 workers lost their lives and 8,906 were injured.
This suggests that while safety standards are partly respected from a physical hazard perspective, fundamental labor rights are being systematically overlooked. The focus on preventing accidents has not extended to protecting workers from economic exploitation, excessive hours, and documentation violations that threaten their livelihoods and legal status.
A Pattern of Repeated Offenses
Complaints of irregularities have been repeated throughout the almost two years the stadium has been under construction, with some companies appearing successively in multiple investigations. This pattern suggests that penalties have not been sufficient to deter continued violations, or that enforcement mechanisms lack the teeth necessary to compel compliance.
The fact that several subcontractors have been labeled as “pirate companies” by trade unions—firms repeatedly flagged in previous Labor Inspectorate reports—raises serious questions about Limak’s vetting process and Barcelona’s due diligence when the project structure was established.
One particularly troubling case involves subcontractors manipulating labor contracts by adding phantom amounts to pay slips while continuing to pay workers only minimum wage despite working 56-hour weeks. This documentary fraud compounds the exploitation by creating false paper trails that obscure the true extent of unpaid overtime.
The Financial and Reputational Cost for Barcelona
The renovation of the legendary stadium—intended as a symbol of modernity and prestige—has become an image problem for FC Barcelona. Despite earlier promises to sign a union agreement to prevent abuses, the deal was never completed, leaving workers without the protections that such agreements typically provide.
Beyond the immediate penalties of nearly €2 million, Barcelona faces mounting pressure as one of the world’s most prominent football clubs tolerating—or at minimum, failing to prevent—systematic worker exploitation at its flagship project. The Espai Barça renovation, with investment costs exceeding €1.5 billion, was meant to represent Barcelona’s ambitious vision for the future. Instead, it has become synonymous with labor violations that tarnish the club’s reputation.
The ongoing controversies add to Barcelona’s existing challenges, including significant construction delays (already 317 days behind schedule), missed deadlines for stadium reopening, and the club’s selection of the lowest-rated contractor despite internal technical experts’ warnings.
Union Demands and Government Response
The CCOO has called upon FC Barcelona, as the project’s promoter, and the Spanish government delegation, responsible for immigration matters, to take responsibility and intervene. The union also condemned the subcontractors’ complicity and lack of regard for workers, calling for their immediate reinstatement and the payment of all outstanding wages, including any unpaid social security contributions.
The government has warned that the Labor Inspectorate will “continue to act” if irregularities are detected at the ongoing construction works. Labour Secretary Paco Ramos confirmed that the results of a complaint submitted by the union regarding the presence of workers in irregular situations at Ekstreme Works are expected within weeks.
Trade unions have demanded more stringent oversight of worker conditions and greater accountability from Limak in supervising its subcontractors. They argue that the current penalty structure is insufficient to prevent continued violations and that stronger enforcement mechanisms must be implemented immediately.
A Stain on Camp Nou’s Legacy
Barcelona’s Camp Nou renovation, meant to modernize one of football’s most iconic venues, has instead exposed the dark underbelly of large-scale construction projects where vulnerable workers bear the cost of aggressive timelines and insufficient oversight. The €1.87 million in fines resulting from 218 labor violations represents not just financial penalties but a damning indictment of systematic exploitation.
As authorities continue investigating and new cases emerge—including the recent dismissals of Turkish workers without documentation—the full scale of labor abuses at Camp Nou may still be unfolding. For Barcelona, a club that prides itself on values of “més que un club” (more than a club), the contrast between its public image and the treatment of workers building its future home could not be starker.
The coming months will reveal whether Barcelona and Limak implement meaningful reforms to protect workers, or whether the fines simply become another cost of doing business in a project where construction deadlines have consistently trumped human dignity. For the 1,516 workers who have labored under exploitative conditions, justice delayed is justice denied—and their stories serve as a sobering reminder that even football’s grandest cathedrals are built on the backs of workers who deserve fair treatment, decent wages, and respect for their fundamental rights.
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FAQs
How many labor violations have been found at Camp Nou?
The Catalan Labor Inspectorate has opened 218 administrative investigations since construction began in June 2023, with 70% resulting in formal warnings or penalties. The violations affect 1,516 workers across 77 subcontractors and have resulted in €1.87 million in fines and corrective orders.
What types of labor abuses have been documented at Camp Nou?
Violations include 16,000 hours of unpaid overtime, workdays exceeding 10 hours, wages below legal minimum, missing employment contracts, employment of undocumented foreign workers, and dismissals of workers who attempted to defend their rights. Workers reported 12-hour shifts seven days weekly for approximately €2,000 monthly.
Who is responsible for the labor violations at Camp Nou?
Main contractor Limak Construction holds subsidiary responsibility for all subcontractor activities. However, 77 subcontractors have been investigated, with trade unions labeling several as “pirate companies.” Barcelona maintains it cooperates with Limak to ensure compliance but has not directly addressed specific cases.
What is happening with undocumented Turkish workers at Camp Nou?
Approximately 50 Turkish workers employed by subcontractor Extreme Works UAB were working without contracts or work permits. After authorities began investigating in September 2025, 13 workers were verbally dismissed and ordered to return to Turkey with promises of outstanding wage payment upon arrival—a practice unions call economic coercion.
Has Barcelona taken action to prevent labor violations at Camp Nou?
Barcelona claims it maintains cooperation with Limak to ensure labor law compliance but has not directly addressed specific cases. Despite earlier promises to sign a union agreement preventing abuses, the deal was never completed. Government officials state responsibility lies with Limak and subcontractors rather than Barcelona.
