Recruitment and Placement.
SEC. 31. Recruitment and Placement. - Only duly licensed manning agencies shall be allowed to operate and engage in the recruitment and placement of seafarers, pursuant to existing laws, rules, and regulations. In no event shall recruitment or placement fees, visa and other related costs be directly or indirectly levied or collected, in whole or in part, from the seafarers or their families: Provided, That only the cost of obtaining a medical certificate, seafarer's record book, passport, or other similar travel documents, may be charged to the seafarer.
All practices and mechanisms that tend to prevent qualified seafarers from gaining employment shall be prohibited.
Nature of Liability.
SEC. 32. Nature of Liability. - The concerned manning agencies of seafarers shall be jointly and severally liable with the principal or shipowner for any and all claims arising from the implementation of the employment contract involving seafarers.
Duties and Responsibilities.
SEC. 33. Duties and Responsibilities. - The duties and responsibilities of manning agencies shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(a) To maintain an up-to-date registry of all seafarers recruited or placed through them, to be made available for inspection by the DMW and the MARINA;
(b) To inform seafarers of their rights and duties under their employment contracts before or in the process of engagement;
(c) To allow domestic and overseas seafarers to examine their employment contracts and SEC, respectively, before and after signing and furnish them a copy thereof;
(d) To verify, before deployment, that the seafarers recruited or placed are competent, qualified, and possess the documents necessary for the job concerned, and that their employment contracts or SEC conform with applicable laws, rules, regulations, and the CBA which may form part of said agreements, if any;
(e) To ensure, as far as practicable, that the shipping has the means to protect the seafarers from being stranded in a foreign port;
(f) To examine and respond to any complaint concerning the agency's activities and submit a written report on all unresolved complaints to the DMW and the MARINA; and
(g) To establish a system of protection, by way of insurance or an equivalent mechanism, to compensate seafarers for monetary loss due to the failure of the agency or the relevant shipowner under the seafarers' employment contract to meet its obligations to them.
