A labor rights group said yesterday that it is an international standard to have the same minimum wage for foreign and domestic workers, and this should not be changed in Taiwan.
Taiwan Confederation of Trade Unions secretary-general Hsieh Chuang-chih (謝創智) called for industrial and commercial leaders not to distort the focus of a minimum wage campaign by stirring fears of higher foreign labor costs and the possible effects on economic growth.
The minimum wage is a criterion used to assess whether wage earners can live with dignity at a basic level, he said.
Despite Taiwan’s economic growth, its minimum wage has been raised only twice over the past 13 years, he said.
This indicates that the fruits of economic growth have been enjoyed only by a few people and it is one of the reasons why the wealth gap is widening, he said.
Labor rights groups have proposed that the minimum wage should be increased from NT$17,280 (US$542) per month to NT$22,000 to help narrow the wealth gap.
A Council of Labor Affairs committee responsible for reviewing the minimum wage is scheduled to hold a meeting on Sept. 13, during which labor, management and government officials will discuss whether to raise the minimum wage.
However, in a joint statement issued on Friday, the leaders of Taiwan’s six major industrial and commercial organizations called for less government interference in the minimum wage issue.
They argued that wages should be decided by market mechanisms and should not be subject to intervention.
As the minimum wage requirement also applies to foreign workers in Taiwan, raising the wage level would result in higher foreign labor costs, the industry leaders said.
Council of Labor Affairs Minister Jennifer Wang (王如玄), who has said on many occasions before that she will quit her job if a different minimum wage is set for foreign and domestic workers, stressed on Saturday that the council will remain open and impartial on the issue.
Vice Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) said on Saturday that the Cabinet will respect whatever decision the labor council reaches on the issue.
At present, some 1.2 million workers in Taiwan, including 170,000 foreign laborers, are being paid the minimum wage of NT$17,280 per month.
BIG BUCKS: Chairman Wei is expected to receive NT$34.12 million on a proposed NT$5 cash dividend plan, while the National Development Fund would get NT$8.27 billion Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday announced that its board of directors approved US$15.25 billion in capital appropriations for long-term expansion to meet growing demand. The funds are to be used for installing advanced technology and packaging capacity, expanding mature and specialty technology, and constructing fabs with facility systems, TSMC said in a statement. The board also approved a proposal to distribute a NT$5 cash dividend per share, based on first-quarter earnings per share of NT$13.94, it said. That surpasses the NT$4.50 dividend for the fourth quarter of last year. TSMC has said that while it is eager
‘IMMENSE SWAY’: The top 50 companies, based on market cap, shape everything from technology to consumer trends, advisory firm Visual Capitalist said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) was ranked the 10th-most valuable company globally this year, market information advisory firm Visual Capitalist said. TSMC sat on a market cap of about US$915 billion as of Monday last week, making it the 10th-most valuable company in the world and No. 1 in Asia, the publisher said in its “50 Most Valuable Companies in the World” list. Visual Capitalist described TSMC as the world’s largest dedicated semiconductor foundry operator that rolls out chips for major tech names such as US consumer electronics brand Apple Inc, and artificial intelligence (AI) chip designers Nvidia Corp and Advanced
Saudi Arabian Oil Co (Aramco), the Saudi state-owned oil giant, yesterday posted first-quarter profits of US$26 billion, down 4.6 percent from the prior year as falling global oil prices undermine the kingdom’s multitrillion-dollar development plans. Aramco had revenues of US$108.1 billion over the quarter, the company reported in a filing on Riyadh’s Tadawul stock exchange. The company saw US$107.2 billion in revenues and profits of US$27.2 billion for the same period last year. Saudi Arabia has promised to invest US$600 billion in the US over the course of US President Donald Trump’s second term. Trump, who is set to touch
SKEPTICAL: An economist said it is possible US and Chinese officials would walk away from the meeting saying talks were productive, without reducing tariffs at all US President Donald Trump hailed a “total reset” in US-China trade relations, ahead of a second day of talks yesterday between top officials from Washington and Beijing aimed at de-escalating trade tensions sparked by his aggressive tariff rollout. In a Truth Social post early yesterday, Trump praised the “very good” discussions and deemed them “a total reset negotiated in a friendly, but constructive, manner.” The second day of closed-door meetings between US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) were due to restart yesterday morning, said a person familiar
RSS