Administrator Hans Leo J. Cacdac  said that the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA)  has filed appropriate charges against 19 manning agencies found conducting illegal recruitment activities at Luneta Seafarer’s Center in Ermita, Manila last week.

Cacdac said he ordered the operatives of POEA’s Operations and Surveillance Division to assist agents of the Anti-Transnational Crime Division of PNP-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) in the conduct of a special operation against reported illegal recruitment activities in the area.

Cacdac said a joint POEA-PNP surveillance team formed for the purpose posed as applicants and inquired about available seafarer positions from representatives of several manning agencies present at the Seafarer’s Center.

The POEA-PNP team reported that the agency representatives handed them company brochures, calling cards, and flyers listing their respective job openings. The report identified the manning agencies discovered recruiting seafarers  at Luneta Seafarer’s Center as Korpil Shipmanagement and Manning
Corporation, Seaboard Maritime, Wallem Maritime Services Inc., Avantgarde Shipping Corporation, Univan Management Services Phils Inc., Century Maritime Agencies Inc., Solpia Marine and Ship Management Inc., Great Swiss Maritime Services Inc.,  Intercrew Philippines Agency Inc.Epsilon Maritime Services Inc., C-Man Maritime Inc., Trans-Global Maritime Agency Inc., Cardiff Crewing Filipinas Inc., International Ship Crew Management Phils Inc., Michaelmar Phils Inc., Hanjin Shipping, Evic Human Resource Management Inc., Morning Mist Maritime Services, and Seafarers Shipping Inc.

Upon verification with the POEA database, Seaboard Maritime, Hanjin Shipping, and  Morning Mist Maritime Services  were found to have no authority to recruit or deploy Filipino workers overseas. The other agencies have valid licenses.

Cacdac said all recruitment activities outside the registered offices of a
licensed recruitment or manning agency are deemed illegal without the special recruitment authority (SRA) issued by the POEA. SRA is the authority granted by the POEA to a licensed agency to conduct recruitment outside the registered office or address stated in the license of an agency or its acknowledged additional office(s). Cacdac said that for reported recruitment malpractices, the POEA stopped in  May 2009,  the issuance of SRA to manning agencies  and  ordered those  occupying booths at the Luneta Seafarers’ Center to end their recruitment activities or face administrative sanctions.

The POEA had already suspended the license of  12 manning agencies and ordered them to pay appropriate fines  for recruiting seafarers in the area without the SRA, Cacdac added.

Instead of going to Luneta to find seafaring jobs, Cacdac advises seafarers to file their applications directly with licensed manning agencies in their registered office address which can be found in the POEA website

Source poea.gov.ph