Administrator Rosalinda Dimaplis-Baldoz warns applicants for jobs in Korea against individuals or private entities who may entice them to engage their services to facilitate the processing of their application with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration.

    Baldoz said neither POEA nor the Korean Human Resources Development Service (HRD Korea) has authorized any private recruitment agencies or individuals to recruit or facilitate the documentation of workers applying for Korea under the employment permit system.

    Baldoz issued the warning after receiving reports that some recruitment agencies and individuals are taking advantage of applicants whose names were not included in the initial list of applicants who want to work in Korea.

    The applicants complained that the agencies promised them inclusion in the list to be submitted to Korea for a fee ranging from P5,000 to P10,000.

    Meanwhile, HRD Korea clarified that the medical certificate of workers is valid for one year if the applicants to Korea registered with the POEA within 3 months from the date of the medical check up.

    HRD Korea is the counterpart government agency of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration or POEA in the implementation of the Employment Permit System (EPS) of South Korea which deployment started in August this year.

    Normally, the medical certificate of workers bound for other countries is valid only for 3 months. This clarifies that applicants to Korean EPS need not worry that they will go through a repeat medical examination after 3 months to keep their application valid.

    Korean employers select workers from the Roster of Jobseekers sent by the POEA through the computerized system known as the Sending Public Agency System or SPAS. To qualify for inclusion in the said roster, workers should be examined as fit to work in accordance with the standard medical check up that should cost not more than P1,320 to P1,500 (if with added tests such as pregnancy and ECG) according to the Bureau Circular No. 08, series of 2004 of the Bureau of Health Facilities and Services of the Department of Health.

    Baldoz likewise explained that the POEA required applicants to undergo the medical examination only if they have been pre-qualified to be included in the labor quota intended for Filipino workers. Yet, POEA also made it clear that inclusion in the roster is not yet a guarantee of employment.