The Cabinet-level Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) reminded local employers yesterday that they will face far harsher penalties under the newly revised Employment Service Law if they hire illegal foreign laborers.
According to the CLA, the number of foreign laborers who run out on their employers averaged 4,000 a year over the past three years. CLA officials said most runaway alien workers have stayed in Taiwan, doing odd jobs illegally.
Employers still hire foreigners even when they can't get the required permits, officials said, and others prefer illegal laborers because they can be paid less. The officials added that the abundance of jobs for illegal laborers has encouraged many of them to run away from their legal employers.
The CLA proposed a package of amendments to the Employment Service Law that would increase the penalties on those who employ illegal foreign laborers.
Under the newly approved amendments, hiring foreigners who do not have work permits or whose work permits have expired will incur a fine of between NT$150,000 and NT$750,000. Previously, the maximum fine was NT$90,000.
Those who violate the same rule within five years will face a maximum three-year prison term plus a fine of up to NT$1.2 million and their permits to hire foreign workers will be revoked.
Employers who assign their foreign employees to work for friends or relatives or any other work not listed on their contracts will face a fine of between NT$30,000 and NT$150,000.
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