THE Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) closed on Thursday the main office and three branches of Dream Pathway Education and Immigration Services (Dream Pathway), an immigration consultancy firm illegally offering jobs as an entry point to permanent residency in Canada.
The DMW, through its Migrant Workers Protection Bureau (MWPB) and in coordination with local government and police officers, padlocked Dream Pathway’s head office in Mandaluyong City, and its three branches in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija; Apalit, Pampanga; and Lipa City, Batangas.
DMW Officer-in-Charge Hans Leo J. Cacdac ordered Dream Pathway’s closure for the illegal recruitment of Filipino nurses, caregivers, nursing aides, and welders to Canada.
“Dream Pathway is among the unauthorized entities taking advantage of Canada’s immigration programs, which are being used as a doorway to Canada for temporary work before reaching permanent residency. Aside from not securing a proper license from the DMW, they are charging exorbitant processing fees to hopeful applicants,” Cacdac said.
The DMW-MWPB conducted surveillance operations and found that Dream Pathway offered various jobs in Canada with a Php 110,000 professional fee under the Atlantic Immigration Pilot (AIP) program.
Filipinos bound for Canada under AIP must undergo contract verification and documentary processing by the DMW as legal documentation as OFWs, whether through direct hire processing or a licensed Philippine recruitment agency.
Cacdac ordered Dream Pathway to face illegal recruitment charges and urged the consultancy firm’s victims to contact the DMW for assistance in filing cases against the agency.
The firm’s officers and personnel will be included in the DMW’s “List of Persons and Establishments with Derogatory Record.” They will be permanently denied participation in the government’s overseas recruitment program.
The closure of the consultancy firm is the first operation involving the simultaneous padlocking of a company’s main and branch offices conducted by the DMW to crack down on illegal recruiters preying on OFWs and applicants who wish to work abroad.
The DMW reminds everyone that all Filipinos bound for employment in Canada must undergo proper document verification and processing with the DMW for legal documentation as migrant workers.
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