BI chief reiterates warning against illegal BPO hiring
MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco expressed concern about the growing number of Filipinos recruited by trafficking syndicates to illegally work in Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies abroad.
“There are reports that many of our kababayan are offered work in BPOs, only to end up working for scamming companies abroad,” Tansingco noted.
“We reiterate our warning not to entertain offers received on social media and always coordinate with the Department of Migrant Workers when applying for legal work abroad,” he added.
The BI chief’s warning comes after six crypto trafficking victims were intercepted by authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal (NAIA) 3 and at the Clark International Airport.
Last January 20, Travel Control and Enforcement Unit Chief Ann Camille Mina reported three travelers bound for Bangkok, Thailand who were stopped after posting as members of a company group tour
Upon further inspection, the three admitted that they were bound for Laos after accepting a Php40,000 (US$737.74) offer to work as a customer service representative, a sales representative, and a cook in an investment company.
Likewise, last January 31, officers at the Clark International Airport intercepted three male victims who attempted to fly to Thailand as employees of a local cargo company who were also on a group tour.
They later confessed that they were hired by an agent they met on social media to work as encoders and e-games staff with a salary of US$1,000.
The government is urging the public to be more careful in accepting overseas jobs as numerous reports have been released of Filipino citizens recruited and trafficked by cryptocurrency scam companies that are physically abused by their foreign employers.
