Two teenage workers in a Cebu city eatery filed a child abuse complaint against their employer.
They said he verbally abused them, let them work long hours, withheld their salaries and fed them leftover spoiled rice.
Junrey Ligutom, 19, and Roselyn Niego, 18, filed the complaint for violation of Republic Act 7610 last Aug. 14 at the Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office against eatery owner Tyrone Uy of M.H. Aznar Road, Sambag II, Cebu City.
minorS
Niego, who turned 18 last June 3, was a minor when the alleged abuse happened from April 29 to May 30. Another co-worker, a 16-year-old girl, didn’t file a complaint against Uy but she left the job and stayed with her uncle, who rescued them from Uy’s eatery last May 30.
The two complainants were placed in the protection of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
All three workers are from Zamboanga del Sur.
Ligutom started working last April 29 while Niego worked at the eatery since January this year.
Niego related in her affidavit that they were treated well at first. But when their employer found out that her two co-workers were having a relationship, his treatment of them changed.
The teenagers said Uy started verbally abusing them, let them work from 4 a.m. to 10 p.m., didn’t allow them to have days off, and withheld their salaries.
help from uncle
The employees called the 16-year-old girl’s uncle on the cell phone to help them get away.
The uncle, who arrived on May 30, was first threatened by the wife of Uy, and backed off .
A few hours later, the uncle returned with policemen and succeeded in rescuing Ligutom, Niego, and his niece.
The complainants said they only filed the complaint after talks with the employer to pay them their salaries failed.
They said they needed their salaries so that they could go home to Zamboanga.
Cebu City Prosecutor Rogelio del Prado assured the complainants that the case would be resolved within 60 days. Correspondent Tweeny M.
Malinao