Chen Chu (
The president's nine-member policy task force on Tuesday proposed scrapping the monthly minimum wage.
Chen said doing so would lower Taiwan in the esteem of its international peers.
"The law is a basic protection of benefits for marginal and underprivileged workers," Chen said.
The council chairwoman also said that Taiwan's human rights image would be diminished if the minimum-wage guarantee was eliminated.
Under the nation's Labor Standards Law, Taiwanese and and foreign laborers are guaranteed a minimum of NT$15,840 monthly.
Though the nine-member task force put forth its proposal to address the concerns of local bus-inesses, Chen said yesterday her comments were in no way made out of disrespect for the group.
Local businesses complain that the cost of foreign laborers in Taiwan is as much as two times higher than other countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong.
While Chen is opposed to scrapping the minimum wage, the council is exploring ways to reduce other forms of compensation to foreign workers.
One proposal includes deducting food and rent allowances from foreign laborers' monthly pay. Currently, employers pay for these expenses.
The council is also negotiating with other countries to reduce fees that are paid to foreign labor brokers.
The council said yesterday that it would continue its policy of reducing the number of foreign laborers in Taiwan, a program that began in September.
The policy is meant to ensure that there are enough jobs for Taiwanese. The initial goal is to reduce the number of foreign laborers in Taiwan by 15,000 by next month.
But some local industries say the restrictions are preventing them from getting access to cheap labor.
Su Shiu-yi (蘇秀義), deputy director-general of the council's Em-ployment and Vocational Training Administration, said the council, at the request of government officials, may relax limits for certain industries.
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