Monopoly Health Check Centre In Manila Costing More Questioned 
By Rosli Abidin Yahya

Bandar Seri Begawan - Bruneians who recruit Philippines workers and maids are now burdened with an extra cost to the tune of about $170 per worker because they have to undergo a heath screening from a particular centre in Manila.

Employment agents said the need for the workers to be screened at one particular centre in Manila, which apparently has a monopoly, has ended up having to pay an additional 5,000 pesos ($170) per worker.

They said the workers were not allowed to undergo health screening at other health centres, which would cost them only a fraction of the current cost charged by the specified health centre.

"We wonder why the workers needed to go to that particular health centre in Manila when the workers could save money by undergoing health certification at other approved centres.

"Furthermore the health certifications obtained there did not exempt them from undergoing another health test at the Health Screening Centre in Berakas on their arrival in Brunei," they said.

They said the workers still needed to go for health checks in Brunei even though they had incurred the additional costs in Manila.

"The expensive Manila tests have jacked up cost of hiring foreign workers including domestic maids from Manila.

"We cannot absorb the additional charges and had no choice but to pass it to their prospective employers," they said.

They added they did not face similar problems in recruiting workers from other countries where they can undergo health certifications from any health centres.

"The problem is why those workers had to undergo health certification at one place only in Manila while other health centres were also able to provide such health certification.

"Other health centres are also legal as they obtained permission to conduct certifications from the Philippines government," they said.

They hoped the newly introduced procedure could be changed so Bruneians could continue to employ workers from Philippines including maids at previous prices.

Brudirect.com