The Ministry of Labor yesterday said that it is illegal for employers to fire foreign migrant workers who are pregnant or have given birth to children during their stay in Taiwan, in response to calls by some employers to test workers for pregnancy prior to their employment.
On Monday, an Indonesian woman working as a caregiver in Taiwan, who said she was unaware of her pregnancy, gave birth to a child in her employer’s house.
The incident and other similar cases spurred calls for the government to put pregnancy tests back on the list of medical checks that foreign workers are required to complete before working in Taiwan.
In response, the ministry said that according to law, employers are banned from discriminating against or firing foreign workers if they are pregnant or give birth during their employment in Taiwan, citing the Gender Equality in Employment Act (性別工作平等法) and the Regulations Governing Management of the Health Examination of Employed Aliens (外國人健康檢查管理辦法).
The government revised the regulations last year, removing pregnancy tests from the list of medical tests required for foreign workers.
In addition, employers are banned from terminating immigrant employees’ contracts early, or forcing them to leave the nation, if they are pregnant or give birth, the ministry said.
Those who break the law can be fined, and their employees can apply to work for a different employer, the ministry said.
The ministry encouraged foreign workers to call the toll-free hotline 1955 to report violations or seek counseling.
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
Fast food chain McDonald's is to raise prices by up to NT$5 on some products at its restaurants across Taiwan, starting on Wednesday next week, the company announced today. The prices of all extra value meals and sharing boxes are to increase by NT$5, while breakfast combos and creamy corn soup would go up by NT$3, the company said in a statement. The price of the main items of those meals, if ordered individually, would remain the same. Meanwhile, the price of a medium-sized lemon iced tea and hot cappuccino would rise by NT$3, extra dipping sauces for chicken nuggets would go up
Yangmingshan National Park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) nature area has gone viral after a park livestream camera observed a couple in the throes of intimate congress, which was broadcast live on YouTube, drawing large late-night crowds and sparking a backlash over noise, bright lights and disruption to wildlife habitat. The area’s livestream footage appeared to show a couple engaging in sexual activity on a picnic table in the park on Friday last week, with the uncensored footage streamed publicly online. The footage quickly spread across social media, prompting a tide of visitors to travel to the site to “check in” and recreate the
Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-ching (林宜敬) yesterday cited regulatory issues and national security concerns as an expert said that Taiwan is among the few Asian regions without Starlink. Lin made the remarks on Facebook after funP Innovation Group chief executive officer Nathan Chiu (邱繼弘) on Friday said Taiwan and four other countries in Asia — China, North Korea, Afghanistan and Syria — have no access to Starlink. Starlink has become available in 166 countries worldwide, including Ukraine, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, in the six years since it became commercial, he said. While China and North Korea block Starlink, Syria is not
RSS