By Marita Moaje

(PNA file photo)

MANILA – The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Tuesday warned the public against fake overseas job postings being advertised on social media.

Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said illegal postings misuse the names, addresses, and logos of legitimate and DMW-licensed recruitment agencies to deceive prospective applicants.

Cacdac said the overseas job offers involve direct hiring schemes that are illegal and without DMW approval.

“The DMW encourages Filipino workers seeking overseas employment to deal only with licensed recruitment agencies,” the advisory said.

Cacdac said a job offer that requires early payment of fees through electronic transfer is a solid indication of a scam.

He also noted that any transaction relative to overseas job applications should be conducted within the registered business address of a licensed recruitment agency.

A meetup in places other than the registered address of the recruitment agency should be considered a red flag.

Cacdac also noted that the collection of fees from a worker or an applicant must always be accompanied by an official receipt, which indicates the amount paid and the purpose of the payment.

Based on data as of August this year, a total of 23,731 or 97.28 percent of 24,398 accounts and posts offering fake overseas jobs were taken down and deactivated by Meta Philippines as requested by DMW.

Video sharing platform TikTok Philippines, meanwhile, deactivated or took down 9,436 accounts and posts or 85.37 percent, out of the 11,053 requested by DMW.

“The DMW encourages the public to be vigilant and immediately report any suspicious or suspected illegal online recruitment activities to the DMW Migrant Workers Protection Bureau official email address mwpb@dmw.gov.ph or through their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/dmwairtip,” Cacdac said.

The lists of approved job orders, information regarding licensed recruitment and manning agencies, schedule of job fairs offering accredited overseas job orders and recruitment specification forms for job opportunities under the government-to-government recruitment program of the department may be viewed from the DMW website https://dmw.gov.ph/. (PNA)