The Ministry of Finance's Depart-ment of Insurance (財政部保險司) announced Tuesday that an insurance policy specifically designed for employers of foreign labor and domestic helpers (外勞幫佣) has been approved for the first time in Taiwan, with a minimum annual premium of NT$850 and liability protection of NT$1 million.
The government is currently drafting regulations that will require all employers of foreign workers to carry insurance coverage for their employees. While the regulations have not yet gone to the legislature for approval, they are part of efforts by the government to provide protection for foreign labor.
There are currently more than 300,000 foreign workers, mostly from Southeast Asian countries, currently working in Taiwan, but none are covered by local insurance policies.
The ministry yesterday approved the first insurance policy for foreign workers' employers yesterday by Zurich Insurance Co (
"In order to protect the interest of foreign workers, the Council of Labor Affairs (
"In order to cope with the new labor policy, the ministry has approved a special insurance policy for foreign labor designed by Zurich Insurance Co."
This policy is to provide comprehensive insurance protection for foreign workers, or domestic household help (顧佣) and their employers. For example, the policy for domestic help would provide four protections with a minimum annual insurance premium of NT$850, which provides coverage of accident liability for foreign labor employers of up to NT$1 million. After adding another NT$1 million coverage of accident and injury insurance for foreign workers and domestic help, the total annual insurance premium is raised to NT$1,150.
The policy is divided into basic coverage and additional coverage; employers can determine the desired coverage based on their needs.
The basic coverage for the insurance policy, according to Liu, includes accident liability of employers, transportation cost of foreign labor, including returning-home due to injury, illness or deportation, reimbursement of expenses should a worker be hospitalized or run away. Additional coverage includes accident and injury insurance.
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