A number of employees and the trade unions have expressed concerns regarding the transition from Caritas to new ASBL "HUT" following the 61 million euro embezzlement scandal plaguing the charity.

On Monday, over 300 Caritas employees were called in to sign new employment contracts with the new non-profit, "HUT Hëllef um Terrain". Around a dozen other staff members were summoned to do the same last Friday.

The new entity is set to take over Caritas' national activities from Tuesday 1 October, in the wake of the embezzlement scandal which is still under investigation.

According to reports, staff members were forbidden from taking photographs of the new contracts and were not permitted to leave the room with the paperwork. In addition, they were asked to declare on paper that they had received the necessary reflection period and sufficient advice prior to signing the new contract.

A number of individuals later described the process as "chaos" and told RTL they had refused to sign the HUT contract, in the hope that Caritas would still continue to keep them on the payroll.

Labour rights must be respected 

Caritas staff members and the OGBL union held a demonstration outside the Chamber of Deputies on Friday to voice their criticisms of the HUT approach, specifically hitting out at the lack of communication and respect for labour law provisions. The trade union also announced its intention to take legal action.

Marc Baum, MP for the Left, told RTL Radio on Monday that the transition represented a "putsch of the social state". He also expressed his dissatisfaction with the government's handling of the embezzlement scandal, accusing Prime Minister Luc Frieden of "washing his hands" of the issue. Baum said the crisis committee appointed to oversee the investigation was made up of people "in the inner circles of the CSV and the DP" and that they were attempting to circumvent labour laws while setting up HUT. However, he welcomed the fact that representatives of the governing parties had called for labour regulations to be respected.

Staff on fixed-term contracts (CDD) will not be carried over 

On Monday morning, the OGBL announced that Caritas staff on fixed-term contracts would not be offered new contracts at HUT. It is not yet known how many employees have been affected by this decision. Even those on fixed-term contracts ending in 2025 will be let go from Caritas, in contrast to a previous statement by HUT that the majority of contracts would be moved over to the new ASBL.

Seven parliamentary committees are set to hold a joint session on Wednesday to discuss the aftermath of the Caritas scandal.