MANILA: Speaker Martin Romualdez on Friday urged the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) to remove the collection of placement fees related to the recruitment and employment of Filipino workers bound for Japan.
Romualdez made the call following the commitment of Japanese companies and employers to hire more Filipinos -- particularly seafarers, professionals and non-skilled workers -- during dialogues with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is currently on a five-day visit in Tokyo.
He said the DMW should push for a no-placement fee for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) entering Japan’s labor market.
He said while trainees under the Technical Internship Training Program and specified skilled workers are not required to pay placement fees, there are Filipino job seekers who fall outside these categories that are being asked to pay, such as professionals and highly skilled workers.
"I hope that the DMW can engage the recruitment industry and Japanese employers on how to make Japan a 100-percent no placement fee labor market,” said Romualdez, who is part of the President’s delegation.
Meanwhile, the House leader expressed elation over how Japanese employers treat their Filipino employees.
"We are happy to hear directly from our OFWs in Japan on how much they are valued by their employers, and vice-versa,” he said.
He also appealed to workers in Japan and job applicants in Manila “to report excessive and illegal fees" to the DMW and through the Migrant Workers Offices in Osaka and Tokyo.
“Congress will work with DMW in strengthening existing laws and regulations to enable the government to run after and punish those who collect illegal fees,” Romualdez said.
Source: Philippines News Agency
