The Council of Labor Affairs has notified major convenience store chains throughout the country that microwave ovens must be placed at a safe distance from store clerks to protect them from harmful radiation.
Microwave ovens are a necessity in local convenience stores, where lunch boxes or other food purchased by customers are heated as a popular convenience.
However, microwave ovens are not beneficial to the health of workers who often stand too close to them because of the nature of their job, the council said.
The Taiwan Electromagnetic Radiation Hazard Protection and Control Association recently released the results of its investigation of microwave ovens in convenience stores nationwide and found that more than half of the stores did not place the microwave a safe distance from store clerks.
Since many store clerks work behind the counter or cash register, they might stand too close to the microwave ovens, which poses a health risk because of the radiation that is emitted.
In response to the report, Council of Labor Affairs Minister Jennifer Wang (王如玄) said yesterday that official notices were sent to the four major convenience store chains — 7-Eleven, Family Mart, OK-Mart and HiLife — so they could make corrections if the microwave ovens are located too close to where store clerks are usually stationed.
In addition to the notices, the council will send inspectors from local labor departments to check that the stores are not violating the regulations. Those who have not made the requested improvements will face fines of between NT$30,000 and NT$60,000, said Fu Huan-jan (傅還然), chief of the council’s Department of Labor Safety and Health.
In related news, the council yesterday also reminded employers that since Workers’ Day tomorrow falls on a Sunday, employers are required to schedule an additional day off for those whose regular day off is also on Sunday.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
RSS