Undocumented, this Moroccan man worked up to 60 hours a week and slept behind the grocery store

The young man was employed and housed between 2022 and 2024 by the manager of a grocery store in Boutigny-sur-Essonne. At the hearing, he explained that he had accepted these conditions because he wanted to work, build his future in France and obtain his papers through this job, reports Le Parisien.

According to his account, he worked six days a week, sometimes for ten hours in a single day. His lawyer believes that his working hours exceeded 60 hours per week and accuses the employer of having fulfilled none of his obligations.

The Moroccan man did not have proper housing either. He slept on a sofa in a room located at the back of the store. The living conditions were described before the court as particularly deplorable.

On Bladi.net : Shocking testimony on TF1: Rachid, a Moroccan baker, recounts four years of exploitation

The situation came to light during an inspection by the departmental operational anti-fraud committee at the small supermarket. The officers then found that the employee, who had no residence permit, worked in the store and lived there.

The case recalls that of a Moroccan baker who recounted four years of exploitation in France. He too said that he had endured extremely long hours and undignified housing in the hope of obtaining regularization through work.

The former employer disputes his account

The grocery store manager, aged 75, appeared on Tuesday, 15 September, before the Évry-Courcouronnes criminal court. He is notably being prosecuted for having subjected a dependent or vulnerable person to working and housing conditions incompatible with human dignity.

The former employer nevertheless disputes the young Moroccan man’s statements. The court must therefore decide between two opposing accounts: that of an employee claiming to have worked more than 60 hours a week while sleeping behind the store, and that of a shopkeeper who denies the allegations made against him.

The employee’s irregular status occupies a central place in the case. Without a residence permit and dependent on his job in the hope of obtaining papers, he was, according to the civil party, in a position that greatly limited his ability to refuse the imposed conditions or report his employer.

Other Moroccan workers have recently described similar mechanisms. In a case heard in Montauban, seasonal workers said they had paid up to 10,000 euros to come and work in France, before finding themselves undocumented and earning very low wages.

On Bladi.net : France: Moroccan Workers Paid 10,000 Euros to Work

The young man summed up his approach in one sentence spoken before the judges: “I only wanted to work, have a future here and be able to obtain my papers through this job.” According to his lawyer, it was precisely this hope of regularization through work that allowed the situation to continue for nearly two years.