POEA Bans Agency and its Partner in recruiting OFWs to Canada

Filipinos who wish to work in Canada should be aware that the POEA recently cancelled the license of Nanhaya International Recruitment, Inc. because of violations on Philippine overseas employment policies. Go West International, its partner placement agency in Canada is also prohibited from recruiting workers from the Philippines.

According to POEA Chief, Hans Leo J. Cacdac, their agency initiated the complaint against Nanhaya on September 2012 for the following violations: illegal collection of placement fee, misrepresentation, and other recruitment violations.

Its partner in Canda, Go West faces charges of violations on placement fee policy, rules and regulations on overseas employment and other laws based on a memo by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Canada.

Frank Luna, Labor Attache of POLO in Toronto, reported that they have assisted six (6) OFWs in Canada who ran away from their employers and seek shelter at a nearby church. They were recruited by Nanhaya for a supposed job at EPP Farms in Niagara Falls.

The workers claimed that upon arriving in Canada, representatives of Go West brought them to JEM Farms instead where they were forced to be laborers for the construction of a large greenhouse when they applied as fruit pickers and field workers.

Aside from that, they were made to work beyond regular working hours but are not compensated for overtime pay. Their accommodation is a small room packed with three double beds which they even need to pay 80 cents per hours worked.

The workers also said that all of them paid Php125,000 to Nanhaya agency and another Php65,000 for Go West. 

The government of Canada requires the employer to shoulder all recruitment costs in hiring foreign workers as compliance to the POEA’s Memorandum Circular No. 3, Series of 2007. Cacdac said that Nanhaya and its surety should refund the placement fees collected from the workers.