What is “black work”?
All workers , whether students or not, must be declared to the State by their employer via a declaration to the National Social Security Office (ONSS). If this is not done, it is called moonlighting, and it is totally illegal. However, this practice is very widespread in the world of work and student employment.
To ensure that this is done correctly, you can check on the student@work site that your hours as a student jobbist are counted. The count of your hours on this application proves that you are indeed declared to the State since it is he who manages it.
If you are an ordinary worker ( and therefore not a student), you can check this using your payslip. If you see an ONSS statement on your payslip, it means that everything is in order and that your work is therefore well declared.
What are the risks ?
1. Instability of your employment contract
– If your job (student) is not declared, it does not exist legally. In the event of non-payment of your salary or if your employer pays you an amount lower than what he had promised you, you will not be able to turn against him in court.
– Your employer can end your work whenever he wishes, without having to give you notice or pay you compensation.
2. Criminal fine
In case of control, you can receive a fine ranging from 80 to 800 € . This can only be given if three conditions are met:
– You must be aware that you are working “under the table” (you know you are working under the table because your employer has told you so);
– You must voluntarily work “under the table” (you agree to do this knowing that it is forbidden) ;
– A report must be drawn up against the employer.
3. Reimbursement of undeducted social security contributions
Social security contributions are normally deducted by the ONSS from the remuneration of each worker . For this, the worker must of course be declared . By not being declared · e, these social security contributions are therefore not deducted from you when you work undeclared. In the event of an inspection, in addition to the criminal penalties, you will therefore have to pay the contributions for the period when you worked “under the table”. And since these were not collected on time, you will have to pay additional late payment compensation.
4. Non-protection in the event of an accident at work
– In the event of an accident at work, when a worker has signed a contract, he / she is protected by the employer’s insurance. And if you fall ill and this illness prevents you from working, you will not be able to benefit from the indemnities paid by the mutual insurance company in the event of incapacity for work.
5. Others
– By working undeclared, you will not be entitled to statutory holidays paid by the employer.
– Since you do not contribute to social security, your income and length of service will not be taken into account for the calculation of your pension.
– If you are a job seeker and you benefit from unemployment or integration benefits, the sanctions of the ONEM can be very heavy: you risk having to reimburse the benefits you have received and the ONEM can decide to exclude you temporarily (or definitively in the event of a repeat offence).
Sometimes we don’t know…
Some clues can alert you to the fact of not being declared · e such as the absence of a payslip, remuneration in cash and not in your bank account, not having signed a contract…. Indeed, from the first day you start working, you must have signed your contract. Many students don’t know this, which is why moonlighting is so prevalent in student jobs.
If you have any doubts or if you did not realize that your employer did not declare you, you can lodge a complaint with the services responsible for ensuring compliance with labor and social security laws: the Control of Social laws , the ONSS and the Social Inspectorate. An investigation can be carried out, your employer sanctioned and as for you, you could recover part of your rights. But once again, you have to be able to prove that you were working illegally without knowing it, which is very difficult.