A review center in the Cordillera Administrative Region and Cagayan Valley has been ordered closed by the Department of Migrant Workers after operatives confirmed it was secretly running an illegal recruitment operation while posing as an IELTS training facility.
Antoine Review Center, registered with the Department of Trade and Industry under the name of George Masangcay Maglaque Jr., had no DMW license authorizing it to engage in any form of recruitment — a requirement for any entity placing Filipinos in overseas employment.
The closure marks the ninth enforcement operation conducted by the DMW this year. Reports from field offices in both regions triggered the investigation that exposed the center’s dual identity.
Beneath its review center facade, Antoine was allegedly marketing overseas job placements in Poland under two separate arrangements. Prospective workers under a seasonal program were being charged processing fees of 3,500 Euros — roughly ₱250,000 — for a nine-month contract, while those applying under a skilled worker track faced fees of 5,000 Euros, or approximately ₱350,000, for a three-year placement. The center dangled an hourly wage of 30 Euros, equivalent to over ₱2,000 per hour, as part of its pitch.
Canada was also being offered as a destination, with Antoine allegedly recruiting skilled workers for positions as farm workers, fruit pickers, and warehouse factory workers.
The DMW said it will recommend the cancellation of Antoine’s DTI registration and push for the inclusion of the center, Maglaque Jr., and other individuals linked to the operation in its List of Persons and Entities with Derogatory Record.
The Migrant Workers Protection Bureau is calling on anyone who transacted with Antoine to come forward through its Facebook pages at facebook.com/dmwairtip and facebook.com/poea.tuguegarao, or via email at dmw.tuguegarao@dmw.gov.ph, where free legal assistance is available.
