Mischievous West Flemish contractors get face

KORTRICK – The construction sector faces a critical challenge, namely combating rogue contractors and protecting consumers from questionable practices. Problems related to these “bad apples” are not new, and have repeatedly put the construction sector, including in West Flanders, in a negative light. It is therefore encouraging to see that both the construction union Embuild and Bouwunie are responding positively to Justice Minister Paul van Tijschelt’s initiative to enable “blacklisting” of rogue entrepreneurs to be consulted.

Embild, represented by CEO Nico Demeester, welcomes Justice Minister Paul van Tijschelt’s proposal to create a “blacklist” of rogue entrepreneurs. Demeester stresses the importance of transparency and reliability in this sector.

It calls for the possibility of consulting administrative bans so that consumers and business partners can check the people they deal with. In addition, Embild stresses the importance of faster adjudications and publications of professional bans, with a potential role for a central registry of bans for administration. JustBan.

On the other hand, Bouwunie, led by Jean-Pierre Wijtens, welcomes the central registry of administrative bans JustBan as a valuable tool for consumers. The organization shares its concerns about rogue actors in the construction industry, and notes that these individuals are damaging the sector’s image. However, Booni calls for a faster ruling on the administrative ban, especially for contractors who have repeatedly gone bankrupt. They point to the need for effective enforcement of such bans to make the registry useful.

step forward

Bouwunie goes further by suggesting that there should also be a database of foreign contractors, whether in a B2B or B2G context. This system will indicate whether the foreign contractor is complying with all legal obligations (green) or whether there are problems (red), such as violations of Belgian regulations or social dumping.

Both organizations are already calling for greater transparency, effective measures and consumer protection in the construction sector. They realize that working together towards a fair and honest sector is in everyone’s interest, and that there is no place for rogue contractors and cowboys who damage the reputation of the construction industry.