Winston Pedro Bayron
It’s time again for another warning about unscrupulous recruiters preying on unsuspecting Filipino teachers. This time, we are warning about a recruiter by the name of Winston Pedro Bayron. Mr. Bayron is accused of recruiting Filipinos from the island of Bohol to teach in Thailand.
I have been approached several times about this recruiter and have heard nearly the same story every time. He allegedly recruits Filipinos with any kind of college background to teach in Thailand with promises of high salaries and immediate employment. Allegedly, on his initial recruitment effort, he tells potential recruits about how easy it is to find a job, how he will help them and how they need to attend a training seminar with him first.
The training seminar costs 3500 pesos(about $70), I’ve been told it is a pep talk to get the recruits to lay down the recruitment fee. They are allegedly told that they will earn 30,000 baht per month and they will immediately start. Teachers are shown Ajarn.com job postings and they are allegedly offered as proof of the large supply of jobs at a high salary. (For the record, this is something that the owner of Ajarn.com is not happy with.)
Recruits must pay an additional 45,000 pesos(nearly $1000) as their recruitment fee. It covers their transportation to Bangkok, one month of housing and all their meals for the month. In reality, it is alleged that recruits are put 6 per small apartment and are fed just 1 or 2 meals a day. Recruits are allegedly told that they are illegal and that if they try to complain, they will be arrested and deported. Some recruits were allegedly given just two weeks before being tossed out onto the streets.
Their only job search assistance is allegedly a print out of Ajarn.com job postings and some recruits have allegedly been taken to isolated parts of Thailand and left to fend for themselves after paying large recruitment fees. One recruit that I personally met, had to take a job at a school on a daily salary. Another one couldn’t find a job after nearly three months. Some recruits had to borrow money from money lenders in the Philippines for their chance at a job abroad, others had life savings pooled from family members for the recruitment fee. Nearly all recruits were very disappointed at how they were treated and ashamed of how they let their families down.
Needless to say, it is alleged that Mr. Winston Pedro Bayron is continuing to recruit teachers. Before falling victim, ask to see his proper registration as a recruiter in the Philippines. Or better yet, visit the TEFLWatch Forum and ask how you can teach in Thailand the right way.
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