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DMW to file complaint vs. agency of unpaid Filipino fishermen
UNPAID. Some of the 100 Filipino fishers file their complaints against a manning agency at the Department of Migrant Workers head office in Mandaluyong City on Wednesday (June 5, 2024). Their complaints include non-payment of wages, incorrect wage payments, poor working conditions, irregular work hours, and being fed with “expired” food. (Photo: Department of Migrant Workers/Facebook)
“The Department of Migrant Workers this morning welcomed nearly 100 fishermen who voiced their complaints against Buwan Tala Manning Inc., which failed to pay their rightful wages on time and caused other work-related issues,” the DMW said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
Migrant Workers Protection Bureau (MWPB) Chief Geraldine Mendez talked with the group members and instructed them on what to do.
She said DMW lawyers and paralegals were on hand to help the complainants with their statements, which will later form the basis for filing complaints and claims against the manning agency.
The Filipino fishers reported that they were hired to deploy onboard vessels to the Indian Ocean.
Among the complaints include non-payment of wages, incorrect wage payments, poor working conditions, irregular work hours, and allegedly being fed “expired” food.
“We are getting the statements from the complainants, to determine the cases to be filed. Suffice to say they weren’t paid in time, in full, and poor working conditions. They (manning agency) failed to monitor the status and condition of their deployed workers,” DMW spokesperson Toby Nebrida said.
