Duped OFWs in Poland file charges before DOJ

MANILA, Philippines - The Task Force Against Illegal Recruitment (Tfair) has filed a complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) against a recruiter that deployed to Poland 96 Filipinos, who later complained of being given a raw deal. Named by the task force in the complaint was the Eureka Personnel Management Services for allegedly imposing excessive placement fees and contract substitution. “We are just waiting for the schedule for preliminary investigation," Senior Superintendent Bernie Yang of the Tfair told GMANews.TV in a phone interview on Wednesday. Vice President Noli De Castro, who is also presidential adviser for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and head of the Tfair, has ordered the task force to file the complaint. Of the 96 workers the Eureka had recruited to work for a glass-making company in Aleksandrow Lodzki, Poland, 67 have returned to the Philippines, saying they could no longer bear the working conditions there. [See: OFWs warned vs agency luring workers to Poland] Workers’ Ordeal Eureka allegedly lured the workers into taking the job offer with a supposed monthly salary of $500 to $750 or about P24,000 to P36,000 - plus free food and lodging. But the workers found out that their monthly salary had been changed to $346.66 or about P16,000 when they had already paid Eureka almost P50,000 each in various fees. The workers also claimed that those who backed out were made to pay P20,000 as fine. They also said that upon arrival in Poland, Eureka’s counterpart there allegedly made the workers sign another contract with reduced pay contract equivalent to P12,000 to P14,000 – half of the salary offer when they were still in the Philippines. Aside from the reduced pay, they said they were assigned to live in a container van amid chilling winter in Poland, adding that they had hard bread, porridge, and even stale rice for their meals. Also, they claimed they were made to work alongside inmates. Unable to bear the hardship, 21 of the 96 workers decided to ask help from the Philippine Consulate, which helped them “escape" from their employer. Other workers, except for 29 who decided to stay and finish their contracts, eventually joined those who left their employer and were repatriated to the Philippines by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). The case Tfair’s Yang said they didn’t need to contact Eureka regarding the case because the workers had already given them “overwhelming statements." “That is enough for us to file a case against them (Eureka’s officials) ," he said. Eureka, on the other hand, had filed cases of breach of contract against the workers who returned to the country. Ricky Bernal, Eureka’s line-up officer, said the case is under review by the National Labor Relations Commission and the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA). He also told GMANews.TV on Wednesday that the workers had filed cases against them at the various government agencies including the POEA, which has suspended Eureka’s permit to process OFWs deployment as a result of the Poland fiasco. News on the 96 OFWs first broke out when one of them contacted Senator Manuel Villar to tell him of their situation. [See: Help urged for 96 distressed OFWs in Poland] - GMANews.TV