The Taipei City Government’s Department of Labor yesterday completed a review of regulations to cap the maximum number of work hours per month for workers in special industries amid efforts to address an increasing number of deaths from overwork.
Calling for cooperation from employers in the city as the regulations are set to take effect next month, the department capped the maximum number of work hours in accordance with Article 84-1 of the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法), which states that workers in certain industries may arrange their working hours, regular days off, national holidays and female workers’ night work through other agreements with their employers.
Department of Labor Commissioner Chen Yeh-shin (陳業鑫) said the department had set the maximum number of work hours, depending on the physical demands of the job, into three categories.
For high-stress, physically taxing jobs, such as hospital staff, flight attendants, engineers and security guards, work hours should not exceed 12 per day, or 240 hours per month.
For medium labor-intensive work such as technicians and mechanics working in the public sector, their work hours should not exceed 260 hours a month.
And for lower-stress, less labor-intensive jobs, work hours are capped at 288 hours a month.
In addition, employees are entitled to at least one day off per workweek and appropriate schedules for taking off national holidays must be implemented, the regulations said.
“Taipei is the first local government to determine the maximum number of work hours for workers in specified industries, and we urge the employers to work with us to protect the rights of workers,” Chen said at Taipei City Hall.
The city took the initiative after a 29-year-old security guard surnamed Chiang (姜), an employee at a private security firm since 2001, died on the job late last year after putting in excessive overtime.
Chen said the new regulations would take effect next month, and employers would be fined between NT$20,000 and NT$300,000 for violating the regulations.
The department will also hold public hearings with employers next month to discuss the issue with the companies, he added.
The Council of Labor Affairs has said it would coordinate with local labor bureaus to cap the maximum number of work hours per month in sectors prone to abusing labor regulation loopholes.
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