The Overseas Labor Center (Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs) has recently issued a warning about fraudulent activities involving the impersonation of the Center and the illegal collection of money from job seekers intending to work in Australia.
According to the Overseas Labor Center, there have been instances of individuals misusing social media platforms to impersonate the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs and the Center. They have created fake Fanpages with names such as “Overseas Employment Consulting Center – Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs” and “Employment Consultancy – Asian” and posted job advertisements for positions in Australia on TikTok, falsely claiming to represent the Ministry and the Center.
These fraudulent individuals have also posted documents purportedly bearing the signature of Mr. Dao Ngoc Dung, the Minister of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs, along with images of Ministry leaders meeting with foreign partners. They aim to gain the trust of potential job seekers and entice them to join a non-existent program for employment in Australia.
The scammers have also pretended to be officers of the Overseas Labor Center and demanded that job seekers pay an amount ranging from 40 to 50 million VND through bank accounts or set up their own international payment accounts (Visa cards). They instruct victims to deposit the money into these accounts.
Once the unsuspecting job seekers have transferred the money into their Visa accounts, the scammers provide them with a link that steals their account information and enables the scammers to transfer the funds to another account.
The Overseas Labor Center has clarified that the aforementioned Fanpages are not their official electronic information channels or those of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs. These fraudulent activities are a form of impersonation and illegal money collection from job seekers.
The Center further emphasized that they are currently in the negotiation phase with Australia and have not yet started the labor export process. Once the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs approves the labor export to Australia, detailed recruitment information will be publicly announced on the following official websites: molisa.gov.vn; dolab.gov.vn; and colab.gov.vn.
The Overseas Labor Center advised that if anyone has fallen victim to these scams and made illegal payments, they should immediately report the incident to the police and inform the Center for coordination and verification.
Under the Pacific Australia Labor Mobility (PALM) program, the Australian Government will allow up to 1,000 Vietnamese workers to take up employment in the Australian agriculture sector. Workers can choose between short-term jobs lasting 6-9 months or long-term positions ranging from 1 to 4 years.
The eligibility criteria for Vietnamese workers to participate in this program include being 21 years of age or older, possessing a minimum IELTS score of 4.0 or equivalent, meeting health requirements, having relevant occupational knowledge, skills, or work experience, and being selected by Australian employers.
The job positions offered to Vietnamese workers in Australia require low to semi-skilled labor in the agricultural sector, including horticulture, meat processing, seafood, and forestry.
More detailed information will be announced during the recruitment process. The Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs, in collaboration with the Australian Government, will jointly select the Vietnamese service enterprises participating in this program.
