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SINGAPORE: To them, it sounded like a good offer: A $900 monthly salary to be a cleaner at the integrated resorts. All they needed to do was pay a "processing fee".
Foreign domestic worker Raquel Abella certainly thought it would be a good opportunity for her husband to join her in Singapore.
She was about to pay an agent $1,800 this week when she received an SMS from Humanitarian Organisation for Migrant Economics (Home), a migrant welfare group, alerting her that the transaction was a scam.
But another domestic worker, Ms Rose Fernandez (not her real name), was not so lucky.
In a police report made last July – she claimed she paid $700 to a Mr Abdul Rahim (not his full name) of a cleaning company, to process the job application.
"He was introduced by my Filipino counterparts and is known for helping people from my country to look for cleaning jobs here," she said in the police report which MediaCorp got a copy of.
"When I asked him for a receipt, he said that he did not have one to issue and also refused to let me see his identification card. Seven of my friends also paid him for the processing service."
When the job did not transpire, she lodged the police report. When asked if there was an investigation, police replied that "the complainant was advised of her legal options accordingly".
MediaCorp understands that Ms Fernandez's legal option is to file a civil suit.
According to Home and some foreign domestic workers, Mr Abdul and a Filipina called Josie had approached the women at Lucky Plaza. When contacted by MediaCorp, Mr Abdul denied the accusations.
"Who is the maid that made the police report? I want to sue," he said. Asked if he knew Josie, Mr Abdul said she was a "friend", but had "lost contact" with her.
Resorts World Sentosa assistant director of communications Robin Goh told MediaCorp that staff recruitment is "done directly" by the resort or via its collaboration with Community Development Councils or the Employment and Employability Institute.
"Asking for an upfront recruitment fee from candidates at the onset is a tell-tale sign of it being a scam," said Mr Goh.
"If approached, interested job seekers should take down the full particulars of the recruiter and check with Resorts World Sentosa on the authenticity of his or her identity."
- TODAY/so
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