MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration has cancelled the licenses of seven recruitment agencies and suspended the licenses of five others for duping 137 Filipino bus drivers into non-existent jobs in Dubai, it was learned Sunday.
In a 71-page order, POEA acting administrator Hans Cacdac revoked the licenses of CYM International Services and Placement Agency, SGA-Sahara International Manpower Services, Across Universe International Manpower Agency, Jenvic International Manpower Services, BML Worldwide Manpower Services Inc., Richfield Overseas Employment Co., and Al Anwar International Manpower.
Suspended and fined were Vigor International Manpower Services (6 months, P60,000), Bridgewood Human Resources Co. (8 months, P80,000), Expert Placement Agency (13 months, P130,000), Dreams Manpower and Recruitment Agency (18 months, P180,000), and Hana Star Corp. (26 months, P260,000).
Cleared of charges of recruitment violations was Goldmine International Recruitment Agency.
Cacdac said the variation in the penalties depended on the number of would-be overseas Filipino workers the recruiters processed after CYM farmed out the supposed 4,000 job openings for bus drivers at Dubai’s Road Transport Authority.
“Except for those who signed affidavits of desistance, the drivers will get refunds for whatever they have paid or given the recruiter or RJ Lacaba lending agency. The refunds will be charged against the escrow deposits of each agency,” he said.
The bus drivers, mostly from Central Luzon, received flyers distributed in various transport terminals. They were promised hefty salaries in exchange for a placement fee of P150,000. The drivers and their families borrowed money from the lending agency referred to them by the recruiter.
In order to survive in Dubai, some as early as January, the drivers were forced to resort to scavenging in dumpsites for recyclable items they can sell. When fellow Filipinos in Dubai learned of their situation, they donated food, water, and other items to them. Many of them have since returned home.- Veronica Uy, INQUIRER.net, November 08, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment