Brazilian judge freezes assets of Olympic Games broadcaster

A Brazilian judge ruled the freezing of the assets of the company in charge of broadcasting the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. The decision was made after a request from the Public Prosecution Service for Labor in Rio de Janeiro (MPT-RJ), in a motion against firm Olympic Broadcast Services (OBS).

The move comes as a result of allegations brought under scrutiny as part of probes conducted by prosecutors at  Olympic arenas. Investigators found that over 2 thousand workers had been hired by OBS through contracts for legal persons or small entrepreneurs, and were forced to work more than ten hours a day.

The judge ordered the assets of the company in Brazil to be seized and made unavailable. The property includes trucks, video and sound broadcasting equipment, as well as furniture used in the venues. Also to be blocked are the company's amounts in Brazilian financial institutions. The measure aims to ensure material compensation for possible damages inflicted on the workers hired by the firm.

Writ of mandamus

The OBS is based in Spain and holds a temporary license in Brazil. Its legal representative in the country, a British national, admitted that no formal employment contract had been signed with any Brazilian workers.

The company applied for a writ of mandamus against the decision, but labor authorities rejected the appeal, upholding the order to seize and freeze the firm's assets in Brazil.

Agência Brasil was unable to contact any OBS representative in Brazil.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira / Amarílis Anchieta