Print

Mail

wiki links

Chunghwa union to take action

Following the industrial action by employees of the Taiwan Railway Administration opposing privatization, the Chunghwa Telecom Workers Union said yesterday that it would mobilize its members to surround the Legislative Yuan on the Sept. 23 when Premier Yu Shyi-kun is scheduled to make his national policy report.

The union also indicated that it could also go on strike during next year's presidential election, stressing that other state-run companies' unions intend to join them.

The workers union's president Chang Hsu-chung (張緒中) made the statement after he led about 10 other officials from the union to visit the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus yesterday morning.

"We hope that the government can review privatization of public enterprises with a similar approach to the education reformation forum. If the government does not respond to our demands, then the union's members will vote on whether to have a strike during next year's presidential election," Chang said.

"The DPP disappointed Chung-hwa Telecom employees because of how they are trying to privatize and sell the shares. These processes have raised great doubts and dissatisfaction among employees," Chang said.

Chang stressed that after privatized of Chunghwa Telecom began, employees' benefits had also shrunk much from the past. Employees can no longer be considered civil servants by the public anymore, he said.

"When the Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] was still in power, we had been supporting the DPP for over 10 years. But now the DPP has let us down," Chang said.

Chang pointed out that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) should make good on his campaign promises and favor the principle of private enterprise management over those of strict privatization.

"Chunghwa Telecom is a cash cow, and it is different from some other public enterprises that have been losing money. But over 7,000 employees left the company in a year, making the privatization of public enterprises an issue for public scrutiny.

"An open forum can be established so the public can participate in the discussion. With the Taiwan railway strike incident, the government should review the privatization policies and it should stop selling shares during that process," Chang said.

The union's senior representative Hsieh Chuan-min (謝傳民) also complained that the DPP never sent officials to communicate the government's policies with the union and, compared with the KMT and People First Party, the DPP made them feel helpless.

"I am all for a complete review on privatization policies and would be happy to see the establishment of a public forum. I hope we can set up a long-term communication channel with that union," said DPP Legislator Tsao Chi-hung (曹啟鴻), who received the union representatives.

Chang also stressed that the union will display a willingness to compromise and to express their opinions as the first tactic to communicate with the government.

However he said that they have also prepared to demonstrate their power in more solid ways should the DPP apply political pressure by threatening members of the union.

"If the government still refuses to give a positive reaction, the union will hold a vote by all 29,000 members to decide whether they should launch a strike during next year's presidential election.

"We think that all other workers' unions of state-run companies, such as the Chinese Petroleum Corporation and the Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation, will join us," Chang said.

The Chunghwa Telecom Workers Union is the biggest labor union in Taiwan. For a decade, the union has served an important role in advancing the labor-rights movement. While the KMT was in power, the union was able to mobilize at least 10,000 people to attend street demonstrations.

Failure of the Taiwan Railway Labor Union's strike to cause havoc for travelers on Mid-Autumn Festival on Thursday puts additional pressure on future such industrial actions to succeed.
This story has been viewed 1546 times.