Scenes of members of the public cornering politicians, often with complaints about their jobs and the economy, have been televised recently. This is a worrying development as it is likely that most viewers would unthinkingly side with the protesters, regardless of the validity of their complaints.
In any economy, employees must outnumber employers. Stability therefore depends on employers being able to pay reasonable wages to the employed. When wages are not reasonable, wage earners will choose to look for other employers that offer better salaries. When workers cannot find employers that offer better conditions, they complain.
Some people always blame the government for such problems and choose to protest. But should the government carry the can?
Simple research reveals that as many as 300 listed companies had profit margins under 10 percent last year. Of these, as many as 200 companies invested less than 1 percent of their profits in research and development -- and many of these companies are well-known. Based on these observations, the outlook for these companies is not rosy: As little or no research and development is taking place, orders can only be gained through high volume sales at low margins. A company of this sort has little option but to move to China and take advantage of the cheap labor. This results in a lack of job opportunities in Taiwan.
Employers who deny Taiwanese employment or pay rises typically pass the buck to the government -- and the government foolishly believes that its own policies have caused the problem. This is utterly confounding.
Workers need to understand that no government can save businesses that do not strive to improve. A business that does not invest in research and development is a sitting duck. Low profit margins result from a lack of pricing power, with businesses forced to passively accept the humble profits that large foreign companies are willing to pay. This plight befalls companies that fail to innovate and create quality brands.
Considered in this light, it should be obvious that the government cannot be held responsible for all economic problems. Wage earners have the right to monitor government and ensure sound economic policies are in place so that quality companies thrive in Taiwan. As for businesses that rely on low margin, high-volume strategies and refuse to invest in research and development -- their political influence must be watched closely. When these businesses have the ear of government, wage earners suffer.
Huang Chin-yin is an associate professor at the Department of Industrial Engineering and Enterprise Information at Tunghai University.
Translated by Ted Yang and Angela Hong
Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on April 9 said that the first group of Indian workers could arrive as early as this year as part of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in India and the India Taipei Association. Signed in February 2024, the MOU stipulates that Taipei would decide the number of migrant workers and which industries would employ them, while New Delhi would manage recruitment and training. Employment would be governed by the laws of both countries. Months after its signing, the two sides agreed that 1,000 migrant workers from India would
In recent weeks, Taiwan has witnessed a surge of public anxiety over the possible introduction of Indian migrant workers. What began as a policy signal from the Ministry of Labor quickly escalated into a broader controversy. Petitions gathered thousands of signatures within days, political figures issued strong warnings, and social media became saturated with concerns about public safety and social stability. At first glance, this appears to be a straightforward policy question: Should Taiwan introduce Indian migrant workers or not? However, this framing is misleading. The current debate is not fundamentally about India. It is about Taiwan’s labor system, its
Japan’s imminent easing of arms export rules has sparked strong interest from Warsaw to Manila, Reuters reporting found, as US President Donald Trump wavers on security commitments to allies, and the wars in Iran and Ukraine strain US weapons supplies. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s ruling party approved the changes this week as she tries to invigorate the pacifist country’s military industrial base. Her government would formally adopt the new rules as soon as this month, three Japanese government officials told Reuters. Despite largely isolating itself from global arms markets since World War II, Japan spends enough on its own
On March 31, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs released declassified diplomatic records from 1995 that drew wide domestic media attention. One revelation stood out: North Korea had once raised the possibility of diplomatic relations with Taiwan. In a meeting with visiting Chinese officials in May 1995, as then-Chinese president Jiang Zemin (江澤民) prepared for a visit to South Korea, North Korean officials objected to Beijing’s growing ties with Seoul and raised Taiwan directly. According to the newly released records, North Korean officials asked why Pyongyang should refrain from developing relations with Taiwan while China and South Korea were expanding high-level
RSS