President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday defended the nation’s economic outlook amid the European and US debt crises and said he expected companies that turn net profits to refrain from implementing unpaid leave policies.
The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics has lowered its forecast of the nation’s economic growth for this year from 4.81 percent to 4.56 percent because of the European and US debt crises, Ma said, adding that Taiwan’s GDP would still reach a milestone of US$20,000 this year, however.
“The economic growth this year will slow down because of the European and US debt crises, but we should not be too pessimistic about the situation,” he said during a meeting with representatives from the Lions Clubs International at the Presidential Office. “And I hope private companies that turn net profits will not ask employees to take unpaid leave.”
Ma’s comments on the issue of unpaid leave in the private sector came amid reports that a growing number of companies that are sending their workers on unpaid furloughs.
The latest statistics from the Council of Labor Affairs showed the number of companies that have implemented unpaid leave measures had increased from six on Monday to 12 yesterday.
According to the council, employers who unilaterally impose a reduction in salaries on their employees could be fined between NT$20,000 and NT$300,000 or have the names of their company publicized if the case is severe.
Meanwhile, Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said he did not fully agree with Quanta chairman Barry Lam (林百里), who opposes government intervention in companies’ unpaid leave measures.
On Monday, Lam advised the government against interfering in the practice, saying the intervention was based on electoral considerations.
Lam is of the opinion that the government shouldn’t fault enterprises for unpaid leave as long as they practice it with employees’ consent.
“Half of what Lam said was right, but not the other half. The government should not meddle too much, but it’s not right if it just does a little to address the problem. It [the balance] has to be just right,” Wu said when approached for comment yesterday.
“The government would like to see employers and employees respect and cherish each other so that harmony can be maintained and the values of equality and social justice in the labor market can be held,” Wu said. “I don’t think it’s right if the government keeps its hands off in this regard.”
However, Wu said the government would not get involved in arbitration between employers and employees, or in companies’ arrangements for unpaid leave and their redundancy plans.
At a separate setting, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) urged the government to pay close attention to the growing trend of companies encouraging employees to take unpaid leave.
The number of companies that offer unpaid leave is not the most important issue, the DPP presidential candidate said, adding that a more important matter was the meaning behind the phenomenon.
“The trend could suggest that the economy is sliding and more jobs could be lost, which is why the government should not underestimate the issue,” she said.
Tsai said there should be immediate solutions to the nation’s slowing economy before Taiwan’s industrial structure is upgraded to meet future challenges.
Additional reporting by Chris Wang
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