19 workers rescued from Malabon sweatshop

MANILA, Philippines - Nineteen workers, three of them minors, were rescued from a garments factory in Potrero, Malabon yesterday.

Czar Eric Nuqui, who heads the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) anti-human trafficking division, said the 19 victims were allegedly subjected to “abusive” working conditions at the three-story factory, which did not have a name and had no signs indicating it was a business.

He said the factory reeked of paint and solvent fumes and the workers were prohibited from sitting down during the 12 hours they were supposed to work at minimum wage rates.

Nuqui said some of the factory’s “supervisors” were arrested and will be held at the NBI’s headquarters pending the filing of charges.

He said they have yet to establish who really owns the factory as “several names” have cropped up. The factory has apparently been operational for years since the equipment is old and some workers have been there for at least a year, according to Nuqui.