Concerned residents are seeking the conduct of an investigation by the labor department on the alleged ill treatment of Baguio-based workers by foreign employees of two popular Korean food establishments in the city which is in violation of existing labor laws, rules and regulations.
Sources, who requested anonymity for personal and security reasons, alleged that some foreign workers of the said Korean establishments had been reportedly ill treating their local workers by shouting and badmouthing them for some lapses in their work when the same could be done in the proper manner.
Further, the said establishments do not allegedly comply with labor regulations, especially in the payment of the wages of their local workers during holidays where they are entitled to double pay in cases of regular holidays and 30 percent of their daily wage during special holidays.
The sources claimed that there is a need for the labor department to conduct an investigation on the way the foreign workers of the said establishments so that appropriate penalties will be meted against the erring foreign workers that should include the cancellation of their Alien Employment Permit (AEP) issued by the agency and their Alien Certificate Of Registration (ACR) issued by the Bureau of Immigration and Deportation (BID).
Under the pertinent provisions of Joint Memorandum Circular No. 1, series of 2019 handed down by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Finance, Department of labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Bureau of Internal Revenue, Bureau of Immigration and Deportation (Bid), Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) and the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), in case of denial of application for or cancellation of the work visa based on its existing rules and regulations, BID shall immediately inform DOLE, the AEP issued by DOLE shall be revoked or canceled automatically upon receipt of nullification of the same.
The sources pointed out that local workers do not deserve to be ill treated by their fellow foreign workers, especially that they are living in the locality, that is why something must be done by the concerned government agencies to address the said problem and to ensure that foreign workers respect the prevailing labor laws, ru7les and regulations being enforced by the government.
According to the sources, the ill-treated local workers are already fed up with the ill treatment that they had been experiencing from their foreign workers as the same had been frequently repeated, thus, they are seeking the assistance of concerned government agencies to look into the matter.
Moreover, the sources said that it is also important to investigate the said Korean food establishments for their alleged failure to grant the local workers the benefits allowed under existing labor laws and regulations in the payment of additional benefits when they report for work during regular and special holidays.
