ZAMBOANGA
CITY – The Philippine Overseas Employment
Administration IX asked recruitment agencies to collect proper amount of
placement fees from applicants who want to work overseas.
Ms. Marietta Bellotindos, POEA-9
Officer-in-Charge, in an interview with local media here said, “Placement fees
should only be equivalent to one month salary, plus processing fee not
exceeding P10,000.”
Bellotindos said their office has
already regulated the collection of placement fees and that violation of the
said regulation will result in suspension, or even cancellation of recruitment agencies’
licenses.
POEA data show there are 34
recruitment agencies all over region 9, 24 of which are based here. Over 6,000
workers left for abroad since the start of the year to present.
Bellotindos revealed that most of
these workers were deployed in Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia,
United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain. Other destinations are
Malaysia, Singapore, Seychelles in South Africa, and Papua New Guinea. Work
varies from professional jobs, to service sector like laborers, operators,
sales workers, agricultural workers and clerical jobs.
Bellotindos also reminded all
interested to work abroad to check with POEA for registered recruitment
agencies to avoid being duped by unscrupulous people posing as recruiters, or
worse, become victims of human trafficking. (PIA9)