Fifty-eight percent of hospitals that the Ministry of Labor inspected for compliance with the amended Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) were found to have violated the law by exploiting loopholes to have staff work overtime without proper pay, the ministry said earlier this week.
According to the act, which went into effect for medical personnel last year, basic work days must not exceed eight hours and overtime together with basic work days must not exceed 12 hours. Total work hours over two weeks are capped at 84 hours.
However, during special investigations into medical facilities last year, the ministry found that of the 479 hospitals that it investigated, only 200 were in compliance with the new regulations.
Article 24 of the act, which stipulates extra pay for overtime, was the one that was most often flaunted accounting for 30 percent of violations, the ministry said, adding that the clause calling for extra pay for employees working on holidays or on their days off was not adhered to by 15 percent.
According to data provided by the Taipei City government, multiple large hospitals, including Jen Kang Hospital in New Taipei City, Taipei Municipal Gandau Hospital, as well as Taipei’s Tri-Service General Hospital and China Medical University Hospital, were among the facilities found to be in violation of the act.
Nurses at other hospitals said staff were called in and dismissed as needed, adding that while they clocked out after eight-hour shifts, they would remain on unofficial and unpaid overtime for between two and six hours.
As they had clocked out as mandated by law, official inquiries by the government would be unable to discover such exploitation, the nurses said.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said that it would step up inspections and ask that medical facilities do their best to improve medical work environments.
Hospitals have unique rights and inspections for medical facilities should not be handled in the same way as business groups, Taiwan Nurses Union director Jane Lu (盧孳豔) said, adding that government inspectors should work with union representatives to overcome the issue of the establishments exploiting loopholes in regulations.
The establishments usually turn in inspection results that indicate the facility is well-staffed and complying with the law, while the reality could not be further from the truth, the Taiwan Healthcare Reform Foundation said.
Fears of financial retaliation by the establishments is usually what causes medical staff to keep quiet about possible illegal practices and the government should put in place specific channels for employees to voice complaints, the foundation said.
The Ministry of Labor said that work hours should still be taken into account during off-peak hours, adding that legal channels remain open if medical staff find their pay docked or if they are forced to “earn” their pay via overtime.
The ministry conducts special task force investigations into the medical and insurance industries every year, the ministry said, adding that it would consider asking the unions to come along on inspections in the future.
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