By: Fred Padernos
Correspondent

Tacloban City —  Following the rescue of  some 64  persons, 16 of which were from Tacloban  who were illegally recruited to work in a canning factory in Zamboanga City this week,  the city  government facilitated the filing of appropriate complaint before the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)  here to run after the people behind this illegal activities.

This was according to Councilor Cristina Gonzales-Romualdez, Chairman Committee on Social Services, who delivered a privilege  speech   before the city council yesterday (Wednesday) to this effect.

According to  councilor Romualdez,  “ a complaint of illegal recruitment was filed with the Department of Labor and Employment Regional Office VIII against North West Manpower Services, with office address at Calle Assumption, Zone 8, Barangay Ayala, Zamboanga City and Aquatic Food Corporation (principal), with business address located at Recodo, Zamboanga City, respectively. Said complaint was based on an alleged breach of contract, non-compliance of labor standards and unsafe working condition which was filed by the parents of eight (8) workers in the said companies”.

Tacloban's first lady and city councilor Cristina Gonzales-Romualdez listens to the victims of illegal recruitment rescued this week from a canning factory in Zamboanga City, as they narrate their misfortunes in that factory. Hon. Romualdez, who chairs the committee on Social Services immediately visited the victims who are temporarily housed in a government shelter, and extended the needed assistance including legal action to give them justice.(FRED PADERNOS)

Councilor Romualdez  who immediately  extended assistance to the victims upon their arrival in Tacloban the other day, she learned from the victims that they suffered an inhumane treatment and unfair labor practice such as,  “

1. Instead of being paid 150.00 daily waged as promised all they got was only 15.00 per bucket of sardines they finished containing about 20 kilos of sardines;
2. Food, lodging, boarding and travel expenses where not free but rather charged to their daily wage;
3. At times food as viand were given they were all expired canned goods forced on them to eat which in the end they were made to pay;
4. Some who worked for two weeks were given a net pay of forty-five (45) pesos as a total wage;
5. Workers with fever were forced to work without considerations, even threatened that for those sick workers who will not render work will be made to sleep in one of the destroyed and rusty trucks instead in a room  ; and
6. No protection gears were given to them that caused some of them to be inflicted with lacerations by the tin cans they used which later on resulted to open wounds on some workers who were still forced to continue canning sardines despite the worsening conditions of their wounded hands” .

“ These are just some of the horrible facts that these illegally recruited workers experienced. This is totally devastating to the victims, to their families and to us here who has a primordial concern to our constituents”, the lady councilor said.

Further, the lady councilor reported to the august body that, “upon getting the same information regarding this said complaint, immediately the Honorable Mayor Alfred S. Romualdez mandated the City Social Welfare and Development Office under CSWD Officer Liliosa R. Baltazar to coordinate with DOLE Regional Office VIII and other concerned agencies to fast track the rescue of said victims and prepare facilities to fetch the same  workers after they are rescued from their point of origin. In fact through the Office of the City Mayor a bus was used to fetch rescued workers at the ports of Hilongos, Leyte in the evening of August 9, 2010 and got back here in Tacloban already early morning yesterday August 10, 2010- I salute our CSWD employees!”

A total of sixty-four (64) illegally recruited workers were rescued by the Composite Team – CIDG, DSWD, DOJ, Visayan Forum all from Region IX, Zamboanga City. All these rescued illegally recruited workers are from the Province of Leyte and sixteen (16) of them are from this City of Tacloban, she said.

A RESOLUTION PASSED

After the presentation of data thru her speech , the Hon. Romualdez moved to pass and approve a  resolution “  COMMENDING THE EXEMPLARY ACTION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT REGIONAL OFFICE VIII PARTICULARLY DIRECTOR FORTER G. PUGUON FOR THE IMMEDIATE ACTION HIS OFFICE MADE WHICH RESULTED INTO A QUICK RESCUE OF ALL THE 64 ILLEGALLY RECRUITED WORKERS INCLUDING SIXTEEN (16) FROM THE CITY OF TACLOBAN.

As a rejoinder, she also moved to pass and approve a resolution conveying “ OUR DEEPEST GESTURE OF GRATITUDE THUS COMMENDING THE OFFICE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT REGIONAL OFFICE IX, ZAMBOANGA CITY UNDER DIRECTOR PONCIANO M. LIGUTOM FOR THE SPECIAL ACTION TO THE COMPLAINT WHICH RESULTED INTO AN URGENT TASK RESCUING SIXTY-FOUR (64) ILLEGALLY RECRUITED WORKERS SIXTEEN (16) OF WHICH ARE FROM TACLOBAN CITY”. Both were unanimously approved  by the members of the city council.

In a separate interview, Hon. Cristina G. Romualdez,  commended and thanked Cong. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, 1^st District, Leyte, for immediately extending financial assistance to the victim workers-it was really a big help to them, she said.

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