KHOBAR: Some Saudi recruitment agencies are now bypassing the procedure that requires them to have their documents verified and approved first by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in the Kingdom before such documents are sent to Manila recruitment agencies for the final selection and deployment of workers. This latest strategy employed by local recruitment companies to circumvent the requirement of the Philippine government regarding the hiring and deployment of Filipino workers was uncovered when a Filipina nurse arrived in Dammam last week despite the fact that the papers and other document hiring her to join a local polyclinic are still being processed by POLO in the Eastern Province. As required by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), all requests for hiring Filipino workers for overseas jobs must be strictly verified, and then approved by the POLO offices in the Eastern Province, Riyadh and Jeddah. The strict verification of employment documents, such as the condition of work contracts and salary rates, submitted by local recruitment companies to POLO offices, is meant to ensure better protection for Filipino workers scheduled for deployment in the Kingdom. The verification of job contracts also includes personal visits and inspections by POLO officials of the worksites where Filipinos will be employed, and the conditions of the accommodation to be provided to them to ascertain that these facilities are acceptable. “By bypassing the verification procedures, local Saudi recruitment offices, upon the arrival of the workers, can alter the work contract by changing the salary and/or imposing other salary reductions, such as the deduction of Iqama fees and other charges,” welfare officials of POLO in the Eastern Province said. The officials told Saudi Gazette that the case of the Filipina nurse is not an isolated situation. “We know that verification procedures are being bypassed by some local Saudi recruitment agencies, which is why we have been very vigilant and strict in requiring job placement firms to submit their papers for verification, the officials said. They said that it is difficult to protect workers whose documents have not been submitted by local Saudi recruitment agencies for verification because these workers are already in the Kingdom. Any Filipino workers who find themselves in this situation should call the Philippine embassy and report their situation, the officials said. In the case of the Filipina nurse, the attempt to circumvent POLO verification procedures was discovered when the nurse who arrived at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam was not met by her supposed employer. She was eventually taken from the airport by POLO officials and provided with shelter. Upon verification of her papers by POLO welfare officials, it was found that the document purportedly hiring her to work in a local polyclinic is still being processed. It was also found that she had been provided with a work contract with a much lower salary than the contract she claims to have signed in Manila. It was also discovered that she paid $500 to the recruitment agency in Manila, an amount she should not be charged because the hospital she was joining had already paid $1,500 to the Manila recruitment agency. POLO welfare officials said there is an established collaboration between the local Saudi recruitment agency and the Manila recruitment agency to bypass verification procedures. The officials said they will pursue the case of the Filipina nurse and prosecute those involved as what occurred amounts to the illegal trafficking of workers. Philippine labor attache David Des T. Dicang, in his report on the performance of POLO in the Eastern Province, said that the best line of protection for Filipino workers before arriving in the Kingdom is the verification of their employment contracts submitted by local Saudi recruitment companies for approval and authentication.
