Having taken into consideration the information made available and
circumstances of your case, I am not satisfied that there are circumstances in your
case which should justify exceptional consideration. Your application is therefore
refused. If you wish to work for a new employer, you should submit a fresh
application after you return to your place of domicile. Under the direct visa
application system, your visa application can be submitted directly to this
department through your prospective employer in Hong Kong. The normal
processing time for a visa application submitted through such system is around 4
to 6 weeks.
Please note that after termination of your contract, you are permitted to
remain in Hong Kong up to 14 JUL 2000 and that you are required to leave Hong
Kong on or before this date.[11]
The Hong Kong Immigration Department gave Lacerna only two chances to
change employer. The subject of the first was the prospective employer who
backed out, and the second was Donna. If we follow the version of AIMS, then the
sequence of her employment would have been that with: (1) Low See Ting, (2)
Charmain, (3) prospective employer who backed out, and (4) Donna. However
Lacerna’s employment with Low See Ting is not supported by the records of the
Immigration Department. If Low See Ting was the first employer, then Lacerna’s
two chances to change employer would have ended on her prospective employer
who backed out and would not have enabled her to work for Charmain and
Donna. Clearly, the version of AIMS does not jibe with the official records of
the Hong Kong government. Hence, between the alleged Lacerna’s resignation
letter to Low See Ting and the letters of the Hong Kong Immigration Department
showing that Lacerna could not have been employed by her, credence must be
given to the said official records, especially so that AIMS never assailed their
authenticity.
Moreover, even granting that Lacerna truly resigned as domestic helper of
Low See Ting, the liability of AIMS was not extinguished. The contract of
Lacerna as approved by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration
(POEA) reveals that Proxy was her designated principal employer; the agreed
salary was HK$3,670.00 a month; and the contract duration was for two years.
[12]
Since AIMS was the local agency which recruited Lacerna for Proxy, it is
solidarily liable with the latter for liabilities arising from her illegal dismissal. To