A foreign national and single father to a Taiwanese son is facing deportation for allegedly working illegally for the government-linked Taiwan Foundation for Democracy (TFD) in a case that raises questions over how the government handled the case.
The problems for Ben Hlavaty, a US citizen, began when he and his Taiwanese spouse divorced in May 2008. Until then, Hlavaty had an Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) through his marriage and did not need a work permit to work at the TFD, his employer since December 2007.
Aware that following his divorce his ARC would only be valid until Oct. 25 that year, Hlavaty informed his employer that if they wished him to continue working for them, TFD would have to help him apply for a work permit. The foundation subsequently contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), which founded the TFD in 2002, and asked it to assist Hlavaty.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
On Oct. 20 the same year, MOFA sent a notice to the National Immigration Agency (NIA) informing it that the foundation was extending Hlavaty’s employment for one year, until Oct. 24, 2009, and that a work permit should be issued. Six days later, Hlavaty left Taiwan for Hong Kong to reapply for an ARC and a new certificate was issued.
In October the following year, MOFA once again submitted the paperwork to the NIA so that Hlavaty could work for another year, or until Oct. 24, 2010, which again was approved.
However, on Oct. 21, 2010, the TFD informed Hlavaty it wished to terminate his employment and sent a notice to MOFA requesting the extension of his ARC until Dec. 31.
Hlavaty says that Huang Teh-fu (黃德福), appointed new president of the foundation by the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), fired him without cause and denied him his three-month severance pay. Hlavaty filed a petition with the Taipei City Department of Labor for wrongful dismissal.
Hlavaty and the TFD reached a settlement following mediation. Hlavaty left Taiwan on Dec. 19, 2010, and re-entered on a multiple-entry visa in January last year.
However, in May, the city’s Department of Labor sent him a notice stating he was suspected of violating Article 43 of the Employment Services Act (就業服務法) during his employment at the TFD.
“[They] demanded an explanation as to why I had been illegally working during my three-year employment with the Foundation,” Hlavaty said in a press release yesterday.
Then, in July last year, he was fined NT$30,000 for not having a permit through the proper channels.”
“On the advice of civil servants, I submitted an appeal, believing that the mistake would clear up,” he wrote.
“Then the CLA [Council of Labor Affairs] slapped me with a three-year work ban and ordered me to leave Taiwan within fourteen days,” he wrote.
After a petition with the council’s appeals committee failed, Hlavaty turned to the Executive Yuan, which turned him down on the grounds that his appeal to the council was written incorrectly. It ordered the deportation procedures to continue.
After weeks in limbo, Hlavaty’s appeal with the Taipei High Administrative Court was turned down on Thursday last week.
An official with the court told the Taipei Times yesterday that Hlavaty would soon receive the ruling document, adding that he could appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court.
Hlavaty maintains he did nothing wrong.
“[My defense] produced copies of my labor insurance from my foundation days, which must have meant that the Bureau of Labor Insurance, who [sic] is subordinate to the CLA, had found me legal during those three years,” he wrote.
“If I am going to be separated from my boy for my work in promoting Taiwan’s democracy and human rights at the request of MOFA, then I will go down fighting as an example to Isaac,” he wrote.
Hlavaty has dual custody of his son with his former wife.
Additional reporting by Rich Chang, with translation by Jake Chung, Staff Writer
LIABILITIES MULLED: New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi said Taipei would find out if the firm was legally registered, the guide was licensed and the weather was assessed The assets of Tian Da Local Nature Co are to be frozen after at least four people died after falling into the Beishi River (北勢溪) on an outing the company had organized on Saturday, the Taipei City Government said yesterday. Six people — two adults and four children — were washed away by a flash flood on the river in New Taipei City’s Hubaotan (虎豹潭) area. They were participating in a Nature Joy Camp outdoor activity with a group of 16 adults and 15 children led by a guide surnamed Su (蘇). As of 4:30pm yesterday, four of the missing had been
Taiwanese worked more hours than people in all but three other countries in the world last year, Ministry of Labor data showed. Singapore placed first in average hours worked among the 40 economies surveyed, with an average of 2,288 hours per worker last year, the data showed. The city-state was followed by Colombia with 2,172 hours — based on 2019 data — and Mexico with 2,124 hours, it showed. Taiwan came in fourth, with 2,021 hours, it showed. South Korean workers clocked the third-most hours in Asia, with 1,908 hours, followed by Japan with 1,598 hours, it showed. However, compared with 2019, the survey found
The US 7th Fleet yesterday confirmed that a US Navy ship transited the Taiwan Strait on Thursday and Friday. “The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Dewey [DDG 105] conducted a Taiwan Strait transit in cooperation with Royal Canadian Navy [RCN] Halifax-class frigate, HMCS Winnipeg, October 14-15, 2021,” the US 7th Fleet said in a statement. “Dewey’s and Winnipeg’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific. Cooperation like this represents the centerpiece of our approach to a secure and prosperous region,” it added. The transit marked the
‘COUNTERPRODUCTIVE’: The German, French and Singaporean missions said that Taiwan’s COVID-19 restrictions are hindering local projects and business operations Several foreign missions in Taiwan have urged the government to ease its strict COVID-19 border controls, which they say are hurting in-person exchanges and business operations. The missions made the appeal in response to media inquiries on how the border controls have affected their respective countries’ exchanges with Taiwan, amid growing concerns voiced privately by Taiwan-based foreign offices and businesses regarding the restrictions. Taiwan has maintained strict entry requirements since March last year, generally prohibiting most arrivals except for citizens and foreign residents, while it has required those who enter the country to undergo a stringent 14-day quarantine. Although the rules have been
RSS