Man ‘had his boss killed to save job’

SPANISH police have arrested a man whom they suspect hired a contract killer to murder his boss in a desperate bid to avoid being laid off, newspaper El Pais reported yesterday.

The head of audiovisual services at the Barcelona International Convention Centre contracted a Colombian man who shot and killed the director of the convention centre on February 9, according to police.

The director had planned to lay off the arrested man as part of a restructuring project, police said.

In fear of losing his job, the head of services, through his sister, contracted a team of six Colombians who planned and carried out the killing, El Pais reported.

Police have also detained the sister and six Colombians.

The shooting marks one of the most extreme actions by Spaniards who fear losing jobs, homes and businesses during a recession in which unemployment is rising faster than in any other developed country.

Other cases include an indebted Spanish builder who kidnapped his bank manager at gunpoint and the head of a construction firm who threatened to set himself on fire unless debts he was owed were paid.

In France some furious workers took to holding their managers hostage to demand better pay-offs.

There have been several cases of executives being held hostage over the past year by French workers outraged at learning that their jobs were being slashed.