Massive layoffs made by enterprises in Taiwan surpassed 1,500 in September at a time of slow economic growth and weakening global demand caused by trade disputes between the US and China, according to the Ministry of Labor.
In the first nine months of this year, the number of massive layoffs reached 11,477, up 19.7 percent from the same period last year, data compiled by the ministry showed.
In September, the number of laid-off workers reported by companies hit 1,528, up from 973 in August. The September figure was the third-highest this year after May’s 2,884 and January’s 1,630, the data showed.
In May, financially troubled flat- panel maker Chunghwa Picture Tubes laid off 2,884 workers due to business closures. In January, solar cell maker Motech Industries Inc, which suffered a global supply glut, also announced a mass redundancy.
Under the Act for Worker Protection of Mass Redundancy (大量解僱勞工保護法), the definition of what constitutes a massive layoff varies based on the size of a company’s workforce.
For example, a company with a workforce of fewer than 30 employees has to report its layoff plan to labor authorities when it plans to lay off more than 10 workers in 60 days, while a firm with a workforce of more than 500 employees is required to report its layoff plan when it plans to let go one-fifth of its workforce in 60 days, or 80 workers in one day.
In September, 19 massive layoff plans were filed with labor authorities, resulting in the more than 1,500 employees affected, the ministry said.
During that month, the transportation and logistics sector reported the largest number of laid off workers at 915, ahead of the medical care and social services sector with 296 layoffs, it said.
Ministry officials said a cargo transportation company reported that it would terminate employment contracts with more than 900 workers by the end of September.
In addition, a hospital decided to shut down, leading to 272 layoffs in September, the ministry said.
It added that the massive layoffs in September were concentrated most in these two companies, indicating that the two were isolated cases and no impact was felt by the overall economy.
However, the ministry also said it would pay close attention to the local job market to see whether layoffs are increasing.
Meanwhile, the number of workers on unpaid leave in Taiwan at the end of October was 2,040, an increase of 44 workers since Oct. 15, the ministry said.
A total of 47 employers nationwide had placed their employees in unpaid leave programs at the end of October, up by eight from Oct. 15, according to ministry data.
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
CPBL players, cheerleaders and officials pose at a news conference in Taipei yesterday announcing the upcoming All-Star Game. This year’s CPBL All-Star Weekend is to be held at the Taipei Dome on July 19 and 20.
The Taiwan High Court yesterday upheld a lower court’s decision that ruled in favor of former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) regarding the legitimacy of her doctoral degree. The issue surrounding Tsai’s academic credentials was raised by former political talk show host Dennis Peng (彭文正) in a Facebook post in June 2019, when Tsai was seeking re-election. Peng has repeatedly accused Tsai of never completing her doctoral dissertation to get a doctoral degree in law from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in 1984. He subsequently filed a declaratory action charging that
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
RSS