Many people in Taiwan harbor prejudice against blue-collar workers. These workers are seen as irrational and vulgar, lower-class people who tend to disturb the social order. Labor unions and labor movement activists are naturally regarded as troublemakers too.
The media often employ this bias when reporting on the labor movement. Demonstrations by the Taiwan Railway Administration and the Chunghwa Telecom Workers' Union against privatization and conglomeratization were misrepresented in simplistic news reports as confrontational. This legal and rational method of fighting for labor rights would have gained extensive support from the public if it had taken place in Europe or other advanced countries. The rights these workers stood up for are basic human and legal rights which no one should be deprived of.
Taiwan aims at building a nation based on human rights. However, until now our elementary school and high school curriculums have seen no introduction to the concept of labor rights -- the right of workers to mobilize, to negotiate collectively and to bargain. If prejudice against the working class is not eradicated in the education system, then the government's promises to address the needs of workers and promote their rights are nothing but empty talk.
Should the National Teachers' Association be transformed into a labor union? Doctors working at medical centers and regional hospitals are not allowed to form unions. Civil servants do not have unions. The lack of formal unions in these areas is mainly a result of these professionals' prejudice against workers. Most of them view themselves as people of higher social and economic status. Identification with the working class hardly exists. Yet they are also salaried employees whose working conditions are also worsening. Fierce competition resulting from globalization means that not only blue-collar but also white-collar workers are left with only two choices -- work themselves to death or lose their jobs. From this perspective, there is no such high-end or low-end distinction to be made between employees.
Educating teachers, civil servants and doctors to understand that they are workers too will not be able to address the urgent calls emanating from the deteriorating work environment. I think a national organization of employees should be formed based on voluntary unions. The organization would expand the scope of its collective effort and exert a positive influence on labor rights protection, social policy and national development. It would also alter the public's aversion to blue-collar workers as people who only promote their own interests. The less prejudiced society is against the working class, the more socially enmeshed the labor movement will be. Furthermore, with such an organization there would be a strong pool of people power to counter the future effects of globalization.
On the other hand, labor unions also need to take a good look at themselves and address their individual crises. Focusing on bickering among union factions only diminishes the growth of ideas.
Most individual and federated unions have tended to only concern themselves with union affairs or member services, rather than their organic nature: Unions need to learn and grow as a team. A labor movement that lacks innovation and the ability to set the agenda is incapable of contributing to social reform or winning respect and support from the public, let alone achieving sustainable development.
Chien Hsi-chieh is the executive director of the Peacetime Foundation of Taiwan.
Translated by Jennie Shih
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s (李顯龍) decision to step down after 19 years and hand power to his deputy, Lawrence Wong (黃循財), on May 15 was expected — though, perhaps, not so soon. Most political analysts had been eyeing an end-of-year handover, to ensure more time for Wong to study and shadow the role, ahead of general elections that must be called by November next year. Wong — who is currently both deputy prime minister and minister of finance — would need a combination of fresh ideas, wisdom and experience as he writes the nation’s next chapter. The world that
Can US dialogue and cooperation with the communist dictatorship in Beijing help avert a Taiwan Strait crisis? Or is US President Joe Biden playing into Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) hands? With America preoccupied with the wars in Europe and the Middle East, Biden is seeking better relations with Xi’s regime. The goal is to responsibly manage US-China competition and prevent unintended conflict, thereby hoping to create greater space for the two countries to work together in areas where their interests align. The existing wars have already stretched US military resources thin, and the last thing Biden wants is yet another war.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, people have been asking if Taiwan is the next Ukraine. At a G7 meeting of national leaders in January, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida warned that Taiwan “could be the next Ukraine” if Chinese aggression is not checked. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said that if Russia is not defeated, then “today, it’s Ukraine, tomorrow it can be Taiwan.” China does not like this rhetoric. Its diplomats ask people to stop saying “Ukraine today, Taiwan tomorrow.” However, the rhetoric and stated ambition of Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on Taiwan shows strong parallels with