Thanh Chuong: Lost hundreds of millions of dong due to labor export scam.

(Baonghean) - After receiving over 280 million VND in deposits from 12 workers in Thanh Chuong district with the promise of sending them abroad for work, representatives of Leesco Company disappeared without a trace. Nearly four years after filing complaints, the workers have only received back over 100 million VND.

People are in distress.

In a dilapidated house in Tien Kieu village, Dong Van commune (Thanh Chuong district), Mr. Tran Dinh Duat (63 years old) said that his family is exhausted after nearly four years of trying to get their deposit back from the labor export company. His son works far away, and his daughter-in-law, Ms. Trinh Thi Minh (27 years old), fell ill after failing to go abroad and is currently receiving treatment at the hospital.

Ms. Minh is one of 12 workers in Thanh Chuong district who were promised employment in Taiwan by Thanh Hoa Export Labor and Expert Services Joint Stock Company (Leesco Company). However, after receiving the deposit, the company disappeared. "We are in difficult circumstances, and they said that working in Taiwan would pay well, so my wife and I borrowed 50 million VND from relatives for our daughter-in-law to go. But who would have thought that she couldn't go abroad, and we ended up in debt," Mr. Duat said.

According to our investigation, in mid-2013, Leesco Company was introduced by the authorities of Nghe An province to recruit workers in Thanh Chuong district. At that time, the local authorities organized meetings with residents and then broadcast announcements on the public address system to promote the company. After consultation, the company recruited 12 workers, with the largest number in Dong Van commune (7 people), followed by Hanh Lam and Thanh Thuy communes (2 people each), and Thanh Ngoc commune (1 person). In September 2013, the 12 workers were taken to Vinh City by Leesco Company's recruitment officers for training and to complete the necessary procedures. These workers mainly registered to work in Taiwan at a cost of 130 million VND per person.

The house of Ms. Trinh Thi Minh in Dong Van commune (Thanh Chuong district), one of the 12 workers owed money by the company. Photo: Tien Hung

“In October 2013, during the language training, Mr. Ha Van Tai, a recruitment officer from Leesco Company, requested each person to pay a deposit of 10.5 million VND. Mr. Tai informed me and three others that there were job orders in Taiwan, so we had to pay an additional 40 million VND to prepare for departure. After giving the money to Mr. Tai, he arranged for the four of us to come to Hanoi for selection. However, when we arrived, we repeatedly tried to contact Mr. Tai by phone but couldn't reach him,” recounted Mr. Tran Dinh Loi (34 years old, from Luan Phuong village, Dong Van commune).

After waiting a day at the hotel but receiving no response from the company representative, the four workers had to take a bus back to their hometowns. By this time, the amount of money they had deposited with the company was over 280 million VND. "That doesn't even include the travel, accommodation, and tuition fees we paid for the two months of training," added Mr. Loi.

Shifting responsibility

Having lost faith in the company, the workers repeatedly contacted them to demand their money back, but the company's representatives kept passing the buck. According to a report from the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of Thanh Chuong District, at the end of 2013, when they encountered Mr. Tai and Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Gam - Deputy Director of Leesco Company - at the company's office in Vinh Tan Ward (Vinh City), some workers questioned them and demanded a dialogue. At this time, Mr. Gam stated that Mr. Ha Van Tai had arbitrarily instructed the cashier to collect money from the workers without the company's authorization. Mr. Tai, however, claimed that his actions were on company instructions and that he had handed over the documents to Mr. Gam. Noticing unusual behavior from the company, the workers reported the matter to the Vinh Tan Ward Police Station in Vinh City (where the company was temporarily located and operating). However, the company's representatives subsequently left the area.

“Most of the 12 workers who couldn't go abroad have now gone to the South to work, only I and Ms. Minh are still in our hometown. Everyone is scared when they hear the word 'labor export' now. Anyway, I was lucky; I received back over 25 million VND out of the 50.5 million VND I paid. Currently, the company still owes us over 170 million VND, with the person owing the most being over 50 million VND and the person owing the least being over 5 million VND,” said Mr. Tran Dinh Loi.

Mr. Dang Cao Thang, Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of Nghe An province, said that the Department will soon send representatives to Thanh Hoa to work directly with Leesco Company, demanding that the company return the money it received from the people. Mr. Dang Cao Thang emphasized: “We have repeatedly sent official letters requesting them to return the money to the people, but we have not yet received their cooperation. This time, if they still do not return the money, we will transfer the case to the police.”

Leesco Company, headquartered in Thanh Hoa, was a state-owned company under the Thanh Hoa Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs at the time it received deposits from workers in Thanh Chuong district. However, the company has since been privatized, with a significant change in leadership. “Mr. Ha Van Tai, who received money from 12 workers, has been arrested by the police in a separate case. The company's leaders are blaming Mr. Tai, but that's unacceptable; after all, he was an employee of the company at the time, and the company must bear responsibility,” the Deputy Director of the Nghe An Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs stated.

Tien Hung