Recruiting agencies beware!
POLO-OWWA keeps eye on contract substitution
Officials at the Philippine Labour Office and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA) are on the lookout for manpower agencies and private recruiters who use skilled job orders to hire domestic help in Bahrain.
Job orders for household help for Bahrain and the other GCC countries have steadily dropped since Manila imposed the minimum wages of $400 (BD150) for its maids.
The OWWA offices have stopped accepting job orders which stipulate wages less than $400.
But manpower agencies and recruiters hoodwink the authorities by substituting job orders or contracts of domestic help with those of the skilled workers.
Recruiting agencies beware!
POLO-OWWA keeps eye on contract substitution
Officials at the Philippine Labour Office and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA) are on the lookout for manpower agencies and private recruiters who use skilled job orders to hire domestic help in Bahrain.
Job orders for household help for Bahrain and the other GCC countries have steadily dropped since Manila imposed the minimum wages of $400 (BD150) for its maids.
The OWWA offices have stopped accepting job orders which stipulate wages less than $400.
But manpower agencies and recruiters hoodwink the authorities by substituting job orders or contracts of domestic help with those of the skilled workers.
The minimum payscale for skilled Filipino workers has not been set yet and it is up to the workers to accept or reject the wages and other terms of their contracts.
“We have made a number of discoveries since the minimum wages of $400 took effect. Several scheming recruiters have managed to acquire approved job orders from us simply because they are for the skilled workers,” Labour Attache Alejandro Santos said.
“For example, many tailors here have been duped into thinking that they would be assigned in shops. But on arrival, they are made to work as household help,” Santos said.
“Tailors, master cutters, flower arrangers, beauticians and hairstylists all come under the skilled workers’ category.
“Some runaways here have been conned. They are not illegals per se because they went through the proper channels but they were made to work under different terms.
“We do not have a fixed minimum wage for them as yet but we are doing the best we can for them,” Santos said.
Ayla Marisse G Ginete