OFWs warned anew against ‘third-country recruitment’

The agency said that recruitment through a third country is considered illegal recruitment if neither the recruiter nor the employer has proper authorization from the Philippine government. (Shutterstock photo)

MANILA — Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who are currently employed have been warned again to be more careful in accepting jobs from other countries.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) issued the warning after receiving reports that Filipino household service workers (HSWs) in Hong Kong, Singapore and Cyprus were lured into transferring to countries like Dubai, Mongolia, Turkey, and Russia.

The agency noted that they later found out the conditions of employment not ideal or worse the offered jobs are non-existent.

“The recruiters are mostly nationals of the third country who have Filipino partners in their illegal activities,” the POEA said in a statement.

There are reports of workers who fell into this racket paying exorbitant fees for just being able to travel to the third country using tourist visa and even without assurance of employers waiting for them.

“Reports also said those who found employment are sometimes abused by the employers, and for lack of proper work documents, the hapless workers were arrested and deported by immigration authorities,” it added.

The agency said that recruitment through a third country is considered illegal recruitment if neither the recruiter nor the employer has proper authorization from the Philippine government.

The POEA reminded Filipinos that applicants for overseas jobs should have the appropriate work permit or visa or employment contract approved by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office and processed by the POEA before leaving the country.