Overseas recruitment agencies face the risk of losing their license if they fail to comply with the employment rules on overseas employment set by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). The news items recently released by the government agency proved that that they are seriously in punishing agencies that violate overseas employment rules.

Recruiter for Austria Banned by POEA

The POEA recently cancelled the license of Marhaba International Management Services, an agency that is said to be recruiting Filipino workers to Austria. The suspension was ordered by POEA administrator, Hans Leo J. Cacdac who issued the suspension order based on the complaints filed by four applicants whom the agency failed to deploy.

The sworn statements of the complainants states that the Marhaba agency asked them to pay Php267,500 for placement and visa processing fees. However, more than a year passed and they are still waiting for the supposed job offer in Austria.

The POEA admin confirmed that the said agency has no job order and accreditation from any employer in Austria. Their records also show that nine recruitment violation cases had been previously filed against the agency.

Agency’s License Suspended Over OFW Suicide

The POEA ordered the preventive suspension of Al-Masiya Overseas Placement Agency Inc. for being the agency responsible for the deployment of a Filipina household worker that committed suicide five days after arriving in UAE. The suspension also covers Al Madina Recruitment, its counterpart agency in UAE.

Apparently, the Filipina worker, Alona Mercado Bagayan was recruited by Al Masiya agency to work in UAE as a household worker. She arrived in UAE on February 1 this year and Al Madina Recruitment immediately sent her to her employer. The household worker was found lifeless on February 5, 2013.

The POEA chief, Hans Cacdac ordered the suspension of Al-Masiya for deploying Mercado in job harmful to public health and for not reporting the death of its deployed worker.

According to Cacdac, the life of the OFW could have been saved if the agency complied with its duties and obligation as provided under the POEA rules.

He said, “Under POEA regulations, agencies are obliged to monitor the situation of OFWs –especially household service workers – as soon as they arrive in their workplace.”

 “There is strong evidence indicating that the two (2) agencies committed serious violations relative to the recruitment and placement of the subject OFW, and also considering that Al-Masiya has nine (9) pending recruitment violation cases before the POEA, we believe that there are valid and justifiable grounds that the continued operation of the two (2) agencies would lead to further violations and exploitation of the workers being recruited, ” Cacdac added.