OFWs warned vs Saudi con man

MANILA, Philippines - Overstaying overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia should be wary of dealing with a Saudi man who promises to find jobs for them, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said yesterday.

Citing a report of attaché Alejandro Padaen, Baldoz said Abdul Aziz Khamees was reportedly recruiting runaway Filipino women to work for his clients as cleaners.

Khamees would take the workers’ passports and make them sign a document, stating that they will have to pay a fine of 5,000 Saudi real if they want to get their passports back.

“Our Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Jeddah received numerous complaints that Mr. Khamees failed to deliver promised jobs,” Baldoz said.

There are some 10,000 undocumented OFWs in Saudi that could be affected by the resumption of the crackdown on illegally staying foreign workers starting on Nov. 3. The crackdown would have resumed last July 3 but Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz ordered it deferred by four months.