The private employment agencies that provide work abroad should not collect payments or commissions for their mediation services. Under the legislation, if these agencies charge money, they must be deprived of license, Svetlana Boicean, director of the Information Center for Migrant Workers, said in a meeting of investigative journalists.
Practically all the private agencies offering employment abroad provide the information for charges varying between €200 and €3,000, depending on the country of destination. The persons who have Romanian passports are favored in a way. They pay a tax of only €100.
The Center’s jurist Mihail Cibotari said the information for which the private employment agencies charge taxes can be found on the Internet by search engines during 5 minutes. This agencies offer only an information contract at exaggerated charges. This is misinformation of people who are desperately looking for a highly paying job.
During a year of activity, the Information Center for Migrant Workers counseled more than 400 persons who used the services of such agencies. Practically all these agencies asked for money for information that is usually provided free. But they do not offer receipt or other documents showing that taxes were levied.
Cornelia Cozonac, director of the Journalistic Investigations Center, said that these agencies can be accused of swindle, but the police do not take measures. Civil lawsuits are filed based on the complaints of the victims of such agencies and thus their managers cannot be punished criminally. The only penalty is the withdrawal of license, but the agencies can resume work in about six months with another license.
According to the Center’s data, there are about 200 private agencies providing employment offers abroad. More than 30 of them work based on such a scheme.
