The Department of Employment and Labour has warned workers not to pay for employment opportunities.
This is after con artists requested unsuspecting and desperate job seekers to pay money in order to secure jobs.
The department said it was concerned about a number of scams that keep popping up periodically, where unemployed people are promised jobs at a fee.
The latest scam is one that uses the department’s name for promises of so-called administration jobs, where scammers request unsuspecting members of the public to pay a refundable fee of R250 at PEP stores for background checks.
Don’t deposit fees
“Work seekers are advised not to deposit any fees and share their contact information and personal information, thus compromising their security,” the department said.
“No person may charge a fee to any work seeker for providing employment services to that work seeker. This is according to the Employment Services Act.
“The Employment Services Act further states that a private employment agency must not deduct any amount from the remuneration of an employee or require or permit an employee to pay any amount in respect of placing that employee with an employer.”
The department further highlighted that an unemployment rate of 31.9% has presented a fertile ground for scammers to dupe the public with promises of job offers in return for a fee.
Free employment services
The department, through the Public Employment Services branch, as a custodian of the Employment Services Act, must provide the following public employment services free of charge to members of the public in a manner that is open and accessible:
• Matching work seekers with available work opportunities;
• Registering work seekers;
• Registering job vacancies and other work opportunities; and
• Facilitating the placement of work seekers with employers or in other work opportunities;
“As soon as you’re asked to pay anything towards recruitment and related employment services, know that this is likely to be a scam.
“If someone or an organisation requests that you pay fees, report them to the Department of Employment and Labour,” the department said. – SAnews.gov.za
