'Be wary of job offers in Guam'

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) yesterday warned Filipino workers against accepting offers to work in US military facilities in Guam.

POEA chief Carlos Cao Jr. said unscrupulous individuals have been victimizing thousands of prospective overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) by offering them employment in Guam.

Cao said a man identified as Eduardo Monserate Jr., who also claims to be a relative of a POEA official, has been recruiting housekeepers and laundry workers for the US Naval Base.

He said Monserate is not collecting placement fees from the workers, but is asking them to pay P3,500 for medical examinations at the Bougainville Medical Clinic in Malate. He said they received reports that Monserate has been actively recruiting workers in Davao City and Cagayan de Oro City.

Cao said recruitment for employment in Guam has not started, even as he advised applicants to deal with licensed recruitment agencies and not through direct hiring.

The Middle East chapter of Migrante, meanwhile, cautioned OFWs on a new modus operandi of some licensed recruitment agencies to connive with foreigners, who illegally recruit workers.

John Leonard Monterona reported that they have assisted 10 OFWs who were recruited by a licensed agency to work as fishermen in Saudi Arabia, but ended up jobless. He said similar incidents were recorded in other parts of the Middle East.

“If an OFW was recruited for a particular job and upon arrival to the country of destination there is no such job existing, then he is a victim of illegal recruitment,” Monterona said.