Google and Microsoft AI Data Centre Workers Report Electrocution, Tuberculosis, Squalid Housing, and Unpaid Overtime

Workers building artificial intelligence data centres for Google and Microsoft across Europe have reported serious workplace injuries, tuberculosis infections, overcrowded and unhygienic accommodation, and unpaid overtime, according to a five-month investigation by Follow the Money, Investigate Europe, and media partners.

The detailed report, published on 30th October, examined construction sites in several European countries and found evidence of dangerous working conditions and exploitation involving migrant workers employed through extensive subcontracting networks.

Electrocution and Serious Construction Accidents

One of the most serious incidents involved a 34-year-old electrical tester at Google's Saint-Ghislain data centre in Belgium. In March 2026, he suffered an electric arc flash after connecting cables that had unexpectedly become live during testing. The 400-volt blast caused second-degree burns to his face and neck and third-degree burns to his right shoulder and fingers, affecting 12% of his body. He was placed in an induced coma for five days.

Other accidents included a forklift crushing a worker's lower leg at Microsoft's Gävle site in Sweden in August, causing a double fracture requiring surgery. Earlier in October, another contractor fell through a roof hatch while maintaining ventilation equipment.

At this site, Irish contractor Collen Construction is working on a 130-hectare expansion plan for a Microsoft AI data centre.

The investigation also identified a 2024 incident in Italy in which a Romanian worker suffered a 380-volt electric shock inside an electrical enclosure at a STACK data centre. In Norway, a Romanian engineer fell four metres through an unsecured ceiling at a Green Mountain facility, shattering his heel bone and remaining unable to work for 18 months.

Other reported incidents included a worker electrocuted at a data centre in Frankfurt, Germany, and two fatalities at UK projects, including a worker killed at a Microsoft-related electrical substation in London in 2024.

Tuberculosis and Squalid Living Conditions

At Microsoft's Gävle construction site, Romanian workers employed by one of Collen's subcontractor BenBau described overcrowded accommodation, with 24 people sharing one kitchen and 14 men using a single bathroom. Workers also reported rats, broken ventilation, and inadequate heating during Sweden's freezing winters.

In February 2026, a Romanian worker living in the accommodation tested positive for active tuberculosis. Other residents subsequently developed similar symptoms, while a 60-year-old worker tested positive for latent tuberculosis. Workers believed another 10 to 12 men might have contracted the disease.

Employees said BenBau initially informed only some workers about the infection and told them tuberculosis testing was optional. After the infected worker was hospitalised, another employee was reportedly moved into his bedroom. Around 40 men subsequently left the site for Denmark, although their whereabouts could not be established by investigators.

Swedish authorities confirmed that only one tuberculosis case had been reported to national health officials, with no outbreak officially recorded.

Unpaid Overtime and Worker Intimidation

More than 30 BenBau employees provided hundreds of payslips showing workers regularly completing 50 to 60-hour weeks without overtime payments or receiving legally required holiday pay. Some said they had gone without paid holidays for five years, while migrant workers were reportedly earning up to 30% less than Swedish colleagues.

Workers also described intimidation, harassment, and disciplinary systems involving yellow and red cards for alleged rule violations. These could result in lengthy interrogations, written confessions, and unpaid retraining. In Germany, one engineering manager said he regularly worked 60 hours a week and sometimes as many as 80, despite having a 40-hour contract.

'Since migrant workers don't know the system, there is a big black hole in the Swedish model, where it becomes like a lawless territory,' said Pelle Sunvisson, a union leader at Solidariksa Byggare. 'We have people cheated, who don't get their salaries – [not] even the low salary that has been promised. Some people [in the construction industry] are working for five months for 500 euros, with physical and verbal violence.'

At Microsoft's Gävle site, however, a union representing 70 Romanian workers negotiated a monetary settlement with BenBau shortly before the investigation was published. The agreement provides for back pay and damages, a collective agreement, and union access to construction sites.

Google and Microsoft Respond

The investigation found that complex subcontracting arrangements involving hundreds of companies made it difficult for workers to raise complaints and for unions to monitor conditions.

Google reportedly said its supplier contracts require compliance with local labour laws and safe working conditions, while Microsoft said it has audits and procedures to ensure contractors follow its human rights and fair labour policies.

BenBau said it takes workers' welfare and safety seriously, while Collen Construction rejected allegations that its practices were inconsistent with its standards. The local labour inspectorate investigating the Belgian electrocution incident closed its inquiry in October without finding wrongdoing.

The findings come as Europe's data centre industry expands to meet growing demand for AI infrastructure, with more than 2,300 facilities already operating across the continent and hundreds more planned or under construction.