Chen says free-trade zone hiring quota to be relaxed

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday that the government will loosen a hiring quota for Aboriginal laborers in free-trade zones to help attract more companies to make use of the areas.

Chen made the remarks while visiting the yet-to-be-finished Far Glory Free Trade Zone Air Cargo Park (遠翔FTZ航空貨物園區) next to CKS International Airport in Taoyuan.

According to the Statute Governing the Establishment and Management of Free Trade Ports (自由貿易港區置及管理條例), 5 percent of all workers hired in free-trade zones or free-trade ports must be Aborigines.

The law drew criticism from companies as soon as it was passed in July 2003 on concerns that it would be difficult to find enough qualified Aboriginal workers. The quota is higher than the 1 percent mandated by the Indigenous Peoples Employment Rights Protection Act (原住民族工作權保障法) for businesses with 100 or more employees.

Companies even said that the strict regulation may dampen their interest in using the free-trade zones.

Though Chen did not specify how much the quota would be reduced, Hu Sheng-cheng (胡勝正), chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) who was accompanying Chen, said the figure should be lowered to 1 percent.

There are currently free-trade ports operating in Keelung and Kaohsiung. They began operation in October last year and January respectively.

But the hiring requirement is expected to be a problem for companies seeking to establish operations in the free-trade ports, one official at Kaohsiung Port, who declined to be named, told the Taipei Times in a phone interview.

"Companies here have been asking about the hiring issue since the law was passed ? I think the problem will become more significant if more companies want to apply to operate in the free-trade port," the official said.

So far, no companies have applied to operate in Keelung port, while only two companies have obtained approval to operate in Kaohsiung port.

The reduced quota, however, may not be realized soon, as the Council of Indigenous Peoples said it hopes to maintain it to create more jobs for Aborigines.

"We have no plan to revise the law at this point as the jobless rate for Aboriginal people remains high," said Yang Chin-lang (楊錦浪), a division director at the council's Department of Hygiene and Welfare.

According to council statistics, 5.76 percent of the nation's 454,682 Aborigines were out of work at the end of last year, compared to the average jobless rate of 4.09 percent during the same period.