Clad in signature yellow cloaks with the word “anger” written across their chests, nearly 200 former workers of Hualon Corp stormed the lobby of the Ministry of Labor building in Taipei yesterday, occupying the space until late afternoon.
“We spent our youth at Hualon, now help us pay for our coffins” the workers shouted as they carried bright yellow and white banners bearing messages that decried injustice.
The workers retired from the bankrupt textiles manufacturer about a decade ago and are claiming an average of NT$1 million (US$33,000) each in unpaid pensions, while a court auction of Hualon’s assets in August provided them with less than NT$3,000 each in compensation.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
The Hualon Self-Help Organization says that the government should fully compensate them for unpaid pensions and act as creditor to Hualon in place of the workers. The workers also called for an amendment to Article 28 of the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) to stipulate debt repayment to workers as a priority after a company declares bankruptcy.
However, most ministry officials, including Minister of Labor Chen Hsiung-wen (陳雄文), were not at the building yesterday, as they were at a scheduled question-and-answer session at the Legislative Yuan.
With no reply from ministry officials, the demonstrators congregated in the lobby, singing songs and chanting slogans.
Photo: CNA
A tight wall of police lined the lobby, blocking access to elevators and stairs that lead toward ministry offices.
At the legislature, Chen said that the role of the ministry is to “coordinate” between different parties involved in the case, including Hualon and the bankrupt company’s creditors.
Last week, the ministry proposed to partially compensate the workers, an offer they refused.
Headed by Mega Bank and Aegon Life Insurance, 18 creditors have agreed to donate 20 percent of the NT$2.4 billion they received from court auctions of the company’s assets, on the condition that the workers withdraw their lawsuit.
“Our current funds come from the bank’s donations,” Chen said.
“We can’t really ask them to donate more,” Chen added.
Chen said the ministry promises to provide the workers with full compensation eventually through future auctions of the company’s assets. It would be unfair to prioritize the 300 workers who are members of the Hualon Self-Help Organization, as there are more than 1,000 workers who have not received pensions from the former employer, the minister said.
In response, the workers restated their demand for full compensation to all workers.
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