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CLA mulls subsidies for surplus staff

The Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) yesterday pledged to evaluate a proposal from a KMT legislator whereby it would subsidize companies for any employees deemed to be surplus "in a sluggish economy."

KMT Legislator Hou Tsai-feng (侯彩鳳) yesterday urged the CLA to consider the measure to prevent employers from laying off staff prior to the Lunar New Year.

Hou said that more companies are planning to lay off employees as the New Year approaches, which could increase Taiwan's unemployment rate, already at 5.2 percent.

Employers often lay off staff before the holiday to avoid paying bonuses.

"The government should try to grant compensation to employers to help them keep employees for several months, which would help both employers and employees," Hou suggested.

The lawmaker made the suggestion in response to media reports of possible layoffs at Formosa Plastics Group and Inventec Corporation.

Reacting to Hou's suggestion, CLA Chairwoman Chen Chu (陳菊) said she is also worried about the unemployment rate and promised to evaluate the idea, saying was a constructive proposal.

Hou's suggestion is based on labor regulations in Japan and South Korea. The Japanese government has had such a policy since 1974.

Under Hou's plan, the CLA would pay employers NT$15,840 a month for six months -- the current minimum wage -- for every employee deemed to be surplus.

Kuo Fang-yu (郭芳煜), director-general of the council's Employment and Vocational Training Administration, told reporters that the CLA would consider the proposal in principle but that criteria for eligibility and the levels of any payments would have to be considered.

"Solutions for some technical problems should be solved before the CLA goes further with the idea," Kuo said.

"A definition of `laying off' should be established and the formula for counting the number of [surplus] employees and the amount of compensation should be figured out," Kuo said.

Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文), secretary-general of the Taiwan Confederation of Trade Unions, however, said that the plan is not workable.

"How can the CLA judge when it is necessary for employers to announce layoffs? Also, with Taiwan's average salary at NT$40,000, employers still need to pay more for keeping their employees, which I don't think any of them would want to do," Kuo said.
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