These days, technology has made it easy for job seekers to search for employment. However, not all jobs spread through job placement sites and social media are legitimate. Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz of Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) warns job seekers against social media job scams. The warning was issued by Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). The agency advises applicants to be more cautious because this employment scam uses a hotel company’s name. Baldoz added that aside from sending e-mails to jobseekers, these scammers are also using social media to lure people who are searching for employment using social channels such as Facebook.
According to the scammers Facebook post, Marriott Hotel in Canada is in need of new workers. The said hotel company was offering jobs for various positions such as technicians, comedians, models, actors, stewards and other related hotel job categories. Although these scammers use reputable companies to attract potential victims, it is easy to identify red flags once jobseekers are cautious. Scammers often use e-mail and social media to post fake job openings. However, for a company as reputable as Marriott Hotel, it is very unlikely to receive alerts on their job openings through e-mail or social media.
Unsuspecting victims are requested to send resume, application and other essential documents. The scammer will suggest sending these documents to a fraudulent email address, which is usually a free web-based email. Marriott Hotel has its own email address and will not contact applicants using free e-mail service. Once the scammers earn the applicant’s trust, they are going to request for a certain amount of money to be sent via bank or wire transfer. The scammers will trick applicants into believing that the money will be used as payment for visa, immigration and processing fees. If you are dealing with a legitimate company, you will not be required to shell out some cash just to be considered for employment.
Another red flag is when the job openings have grammatical or spelling mistakes. A job opening from a legitimate company such as Marriott Hotel is free of grammatical and spelling errors as they are professionally written. POEA advises jobseekers to follow precautionary measures so illegal recruitment can be avoided. When searching for employment, POEA encourages jobseekers to deal with recruitment agencies licensed by POEA.
Avoid agencies that require you to make a payment for processing your papers. Do not deal with an unauthorized person of a licensed agency. If an agency promises overseas employment without requiring an applicant to undergo proper screening and application process, this is also considered a red flag. For available job orders, applicants may visit POEA website.
