The number of furloughed workers in Taiwan increased by 940 over the past week, bringing the total to 5,065, Ministry of Labor data showed yesterday.
A large food manufacturing company placed 840 workers on furlough, accounting for most of the weekly increase, the data showed.
Twenty-two businesses initiated furlough programs over the past week, bringing the total to 467, the ministry said.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kun, Taipei Times
The manufacturing sector reported the largest increase in the number of furloughed workers with 933 people, most of whom work at the aforementioned food company, said Wang Chin-jung (王金蓉), a specialist at the ministry’s Labor Conditions and Equal Employment Division.
Businesses in the healthcare and social service sectors have placed about 100 employees on furlough so far, she said.
This was mainly because most hospitals and clinics have either suspended or reduced outpatient services amid a national level 3 COVID-19 alert, which was issued on May 19, Wang said.
Fewer employers implemented unpaid leave programs over the past week in the support service sector, and the transportation, warehousing and tourism industries, despite the effects of a domestic COVID-19 outbreak, she said.
In terms of the number of furloughed workers, the manufacturing sector had the highest figure at 1,655, followed by the transportation and warehousing industry with 836 and the support service sector with 746, ministry data showed.
According to the data, 121 businesses in the support service industry had furlough programs in place over the past week, while there were 114 firms in the wholesale and retail sector, and 61 in the manufacturing industry.
The ministry issues weekly updates on the number of furloughed workers in the nation. The figures only reflect unpaid leave plans reported to the ministry by employers.
Most of the establishments implementing furlough programs are small firms with fewer than 50 employees. The unpaid leave programs typically last less than three months and involve workers taking five to eight days of unpaid leave per month, the ministry has said.
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