b. Liability of Local Recruiter and Foreign Employer

Local Recruitment Agency

The persons criminally liable are the principals, accomplices and accessories. In case of juridical persons, the officers having ownership, control, management or direction of their business who are responsible for the commission of the offense and the responsible employees/agents thereof shall be liable. (RA 8042, as amended, Section 6)

• Local Recruitment Agency is solidarily liable with foreign principal. (IRR of the Labor Code, Book I, Rule V, Sec. 17)
• Severance of relations between local agent and foreign principal does not affect liability of local recruiter.

Where the workers themselves insisted for the recruitment agency to send them back to their foreign employer despite their knowledge of its inability to pay their wages, the Supreme Court absolved the agency from liability (Feagle Construction Corp. v. Dorado, G.R. No. 86042, 1991)