Sharjah: Desperate jobseekers say they have fallen victim to a scam by a recruitment agency group which charged them for arranging interviews which never happened.

Jobseekers said they were taken in by British Management Consulting and Employee Service Centre and Orient Employment Services, the companies which make up the recruitment group, which promised them jobs and even arranged fake interviews.

The group, which operates through two offices in Al Buhaira, charges jobseekers a registration fee of between Dh50 and Dh100.

It also takes a Dh500 interview fee which includes fees for writing CVs.

Roughly 50 people register with the company daily, according to company's data. The group attracts customers by advertising vacancies in daily newspapers and does not mention it is a recruitment agency.

M.A.W, a Pakistani lady who registered with the company together with two of her friends, said they were promised a job after they saw an advertisement announcing a vacancy for sales executives. They were promised that the interview was just a formality and that they were already selected for the job.

"They took us to an office in Bur Dubai and said that this was the company we would be working for. Nothing has happened yet and we did not receive anything other than empty promises," she said.

Aiman Al Zitawe, Group Manager of the company, denied the allegations and said its job was to broker between the employer and the jobseeker and the fees they charged were in return for the services they provided. "I make it clear to people that I do not sell jobs, but they seem not to get that," said Aiman.

He said several complaints have been filed against the company through the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

S.P, a Sri Lankan jobseeker, who had registered with the company after he saw an advertisement for a cook, said he registered with the company two weeks ago and had not received any of the services promised.

"They called me up just after I registered with them and told me that they had arranged an interview. So I went and paid the money, but until now I have not managed to meet the alleged employer," said S.P.

Agreement: Police do not see cause for complaint

Humaid Bin Deemas, Assistant Undersecretary at the Ministry of Labour, said that it is illegal to take money from jobseekers only to broker between the employer and the jobseeker.

"Trading with the dreams of desperate people is intolerable even if they have signed papers saying that the money is non-refundable," he said.

Several people said they could not file a case with the police because they refused to register their complaint. An official at Al Buhaira Police Station in Sharjah confirmed that they received many complaints from people every day.

"But there is no criminal act involved as there is a written agreement between the company and the customers which states that the money paid is non-refundable," he said.