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CLA chairman threatens to resign over bill

Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) Chairman Lee Ying-yuan, third right, and other CLA staffers, pose for a photograph with the ``Super Bee'' mascot during an event yesterday to promote occupational safety and health. Lee has threatened to resign if the legislature does not pass a bill relating to labor pensions. PHOTO: LIU HSIN-DE, TAIPEI TIMES

Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) Chairman Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) yesterday threatened to resign if pan-blue lawmakers fail to throw their weight behind a bill concerning employee benefits.

"I will offer my resignation if lawmakers fail to enact the bill during the provisional legislative session," Lee told a press conference in the legislature.

"Short of getting down on my hands and knees, I have done everything possible to negotiate with pan-blue lawmakers over the bill," he added.

Lee was referring to an organic bill designed to set up a commission to manage laborers' pension funds to ensure better investment returns.

Since the portable pension system came into effect on July 1, 2005, more than 4.23 million employees have opted for the new system, depositing more than NT$127 billion (US$3.895 billion) into their individual accounts.

Idle

The money has been idle since then, however, because the bill has not yet cleared the legislature.

The CLA said the rate of return for the old labor pension fund system was 5.27 percent last year.

"Assuming the same rate of return for the new pension fund system, more than 4.23 million laborers lost NT$6.7 billion last year as a result of the stalled legislation," Lee said.

The bill has been included in the pan-green camp's proposal for an extra legislative session next week, but excluded from that of the pan-blue camp.

Lobby

Lee led a group of labor union representatives on a visit to Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) to lobby for the passage of the bill.

Democratic Progressive Party caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), who attended Lee's press conference, said he understood the CLA chairman's concerns but hoped he would reconsider his threat to resign.
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