Work on World Cup stadium suspended by Brazilian labour court

Building work at Curitiba’s 2014 World Cup stadium has been suspended on the orders of a Brazilian labour tribunal due to numerous and serious safety breaches.

“Countless infractions have been committed, in various stages of the building project,” wrote the judge Lorena Colnago in her decision, the Parana Regional Labour Tribunal said in a statement.

In the latest blow to tournament preparations, the judge said there was “a serious risk of workers being buried, run over and of collision, falling from heights and being hit by construction material, among other serious risks”.

Work is already behind schedule at the Curitiba stadium and the judge said a new inspection would have to be carried out before it could restart.

The Arena da Baixada stadium, which is owned by the Atlético Paranaense club and is due to stage four matches, is one of 12 planned venues for next year’s competition.

After a visit from Fifa’s secretary general Jérôme Valcke in August, the club agreed to abandon plans to fit a retractable roof, to save time.

Football’s world governing body has said that all stadiums must be ready for delivery in December and no delays will be tolerated. Preparations for the event have been plagued by delays and cost over-runs.

The Confederations Cup in June, an eight-team tournament used as a dry run, was played amid nationwide protests over a number of issues, including the cost of hosting the World Cup.

Reuters