Sixty-eight Filipinos hoping to work abroad are now under government protection after inspectors found them crammed into a deteriorating Parañaque City house that authorities say failed nearly every standard for safe and humane lodging.
The Department of Migrant Workers–National Capital Region carried out the closure at a property in Barangay San Antonio that officials say served as shared quarters for two licensed recruiters, ATC Human Resources, Inc. and Rock Solid Manpower & Consultancy, Inc. Investigators worked alongside the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and the OFW Hospital during the check. All 68 applicants were moved afterward to Kabayan Hotel, an OWWA-accredited property in Pasay City, where they are receiving temporary shelter and giving formal statements.
Among the most serious findings, inspectors confirmed that every applicant’s passport was being held by the agencies rather than by the workers themselves. One applicant, aged 23, was found with identification papers that officials say an agency representative had altered — an issue now flagged for further investigation and possible charges.
The living arrangements themselves drew extensive documentation. Applicants slept on banig or thin bedding laid over plywood, with no proper mattresses. Sleeping areas had spilled into a balcony and into a basement section meant only for storage. Three toilets, one per floor, served the entire group, and the basement sleeping zone had none at all. The lone shower stood outdoors in the open, offering little privacy. Ventilation was poor, cooling was absent, and occupants resorted to bringing their own small electric fans.
Safety conditions compounded the crowding. The building had no proper fire or emergency exit, and blocked hallways threatened to trap occupants during a fire, earthquake, or similar event. Inspectors described an aged, visibly deteriorated structure ill-suited to housing so many people, with additional hazards including exposed wiring, a clogged toilet, and poor sanitation. No stocked medicine cabinet or first-aid setup was on hand, and no logbook tracked who came and went.
The premises doubled as a workspace: an agency representative’s office was operating inside the same unregistered facility. Inspectors also noted that ATC Human Resources’ secretary was living there with her one-year-old child, placing the infant in the same conditions as the applicants.
DMW-NCR flagged the property as an unregistered accommodation running without the required authorization, one of several breaches of recruitment, occupational-safety, and welfare rules that remain subject to administrative and legal action. The shutdown marks the 24th closure of an unregistered accommodation carried out since June 06, 2026.
