Balford Henry, News Editor
THE MINISTRY of Labour and Social Security is to turn up the heat on illegally operated employment agencies, especially those recruiting Jamaicans for overseas jobs, following the $5 million fleecing of some local nurses.
Senior director of the Ministry's overseas employment programme, Barrington Bailey, said yesterday that in the past the Ministry was willing to warn the agencies and give them time to comply with the regulations. However, he said that after recent experiences, the Ministry will be calling in the police immediately they become aware of the illegal practice.
Mr. Bailey admitted that the decision was primarily triggered by the actions of Zander Marketing Company, an illegally-operated firm which is alleged to have fleeced local nurses seeking recruitment for jobs in the United States of nearly $5 million between early August and late October.
"Since this has happened, we have decided that once we contact them, we are going to bring the law into play immediately. We are not going to give them any more time to comply,' Mr. Bailey said.
He added that the Ministry was working along with the CIB in dealing with the activity. The Ministry is also proposing legislation which would require the agencies to meet at least 50 per cent of their listed obligations before making any additional recruitments as well as to further limit the period for which they can hang on to their client's registrations fees.
Rohan Newland, operations manager of Zander, was remanded in custody, when he and California-based medical office administrator, Novia Blair, appeared in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court, Half-Way Tree, on Wednesday. They are charged with fraudulent conversion and several counts of conspiracy. Blair was granted bail in the sum of $100,000. They are to return to court on November 29.
Miss Blair was responsible for the placement of the nurses in her home state of California.
A third executive of Zander, Alexander Knight, the managing director, is still being sought by the police over the alleged disappearance of the $4.7 million collected by the firm as registration fees from nurses seeking jobs in the United States. The police said that at the time they arrested Newland only $14,000 of the total amount was left in the company's account.
Although it is alleged that nearly 500 nurses were fleeced, the Nurses Association of Jamaica (NAJ) says that there is no evidence that any of its members were victims.
"We have not had any of our members complaining," NAJ president, Iris Wilson, told The Gleaner. It is suspected that the nurses involved are those trained in private schools and regarded as practical nurses.
Mrs. Wilson said that the situation was, "annoying, disgusting and frustrating." She said the NAJ normally advises its members to remember that, "the grass is not always greener on the other side," and warn them to get as much information and validation before pursuing these offers.
The Ministry of Labour and Social Security ordered the closure of Zander, which was located at 2 3/4 Ruthven Road, Kingston, in late October.
Investigations spearheaded by the Labour Ministry revealed that the operators of Zander were not licensed as recruiters and were, in fact, operating without proper certification.
Mr. Bailey told The Gleaner that when the Ministry first became aware of the operation, in early August, it was known as Blair Careers Limited. However, within weeks, when the police raided the premises the name had been changed to Zander Marketing Company. He said that although the company claimed to be a marketing firm, a search unearthed documents suggesting that they operated as a job recruitment firm.
He said that when the Ministry intervened in August, the firm had only collected $1.4 million from its clients. Ministry officials warned the company against operating without a licence, but were told that they were just setting up and needed time to comply with the regulations. But, although they were provided with the necessary forms to meet the requirements, the Ministry heard nothing more from the management.
