A policy mandating that companies comply with mandatory health checks for night shift workers is to be piloted for two years, the Ministry of Labor said.
The trial is to start on Thursday and the ministry would review the policy with companies and workers in two months, it said.
According to Institute of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health information, working night shifts for a prolonged period of time disrupts biological functions, causing tiredness, sleep disorders and increased risks of cardiovascular diseases and liver-related illnesses.
About 1.6 million people work night jobs in Taiwan, data show.
There has not been an official census, ministry officials said, declining to mention a number.
The health checks would protect those working during the night, the ministry said, adding that it would also establish a database on local working environments.
Such data could provide a reference should the program be admitted under the National Health Insurance program, the ministry said.
National Taiwan University professor Cheng Ya-wen (鄭雅文) said that while the ministry had the best of intentions, the policy might become a secondary screening tool for employers to select night staff.
Working the night shift usually means higher pay, but regulations state that people with cardiovascular diseases cannot work night shifts, she said.
Workers’ health does not receive enough attention, but the ministry should be aware that its policy could be seen as depriving workers of free choice and could jeopardize their income, Cheng said.
The draft policy gives two definitions of night shifts: working at least three hours between 10pm and 6am for at least 15 days every month for six consecutive months; or working 700 hours between 10pm and 6am within one year, the ministry said.
Workers meeting the criteria must submit to a health check next year, the ministry said, adding that the assessment would include a general inspection, blood and urine tests, an electrocardiogram test and an investigation into any symptoms reported by the worker.
Employers are to pay for the health checks, the ministry said.
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