POEA suspends local agency, Kuwaiti firm

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration has suspended a local placement agency and a Kuwaiti company from hiring Filipino workers, POEA chief Hans Cacdac said yesterday.    

He said he suspended the license of Aim High International Placement to prevent the agency from deploying Filipinos to work for Tanzifco Co.

According to 17 complainants, Aim High deployed them as housekeepers for Tanzifco, a cleaning contractor in Kuwait, after they paid placement fees ranging from P50,000 to P54,000.

The workers said while their contract provides for a salary of 120 Kuwaiti dinars for eight hours of work per day, they were paid only 80 dinars, with no pay slips issued. They also complained that they were made to work for 12 to 16 hours per day without overtime pay and were not allowed to go on sick leave.