The Ministry of Labor (MOL) should seize an opportunity presented by the Cabinet reshuffle to implement labor rights reforms, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Fan Yun (范雲) told a news conference on Thursday at the Legislative Yuan.
Fan, accompanied by lawyer Yu Mei-nu (尤美女) and other representatives from civic organizations, urged the ministry to draft policies to grant paid leave for employees to balance work and family life, to amend the Act of Gender Equality in Employment (性別工作平等法) to prevent employers from sexually harassing employees and to pass the draft minimum wage act as soon as possible.
The current legislative session is the last in the 10th legislative term, and if the drafts and policies are not completed this year, they would be unlikely to pass, as amendments are usually dismissed if they have not been debated before the close of the final session.
Photo: Liu Hsin-te, Taipei Times
Article 13 of the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法) states that except for budget reviews or public petitions, all issues still pending at the end of a legislator’s term in office would not continue to the next term.
Fan urged the passage of paid familial leave, flexible leave for parents and leave for spouses to be present during a birth.
Despite the gender equality act existing for two decades, there is no way to prevent employers from “investigating themselves” in harassment cases, Fan and Yu said.
In 2021, there were only 191 sexual harassment cases, of which only 66 were confirmed, Fan said, adding that the hidden figure must be immense.
More than 100 countries have laws that guarantee increases to the minimum wage, Fan said, citing Japan codifying its 64 years ago and South Korea 35 years ago, adding that without legal institutions protecting changes to the minimum wage, 1.75 million workers would see what is effectively a wage cut due to inflation.
Taipei Trade Unions vice president Wang Yen-chieh (王燕杰) said that families with children often experience unforeseen circumstances that require a day off, and urged the government to provide a more flexible leave system to encourage the younger generation to have children.
The ministry should establish a system to investigate sexual harassment claims, Awakening Foundation secretary-general Chyn Yu-rung (覃玉蓉) said, adding that the amendments on paid leave would guarantee workers’ livelihoods, while encouraging men to take on a bigger role in family life.
Taiwan Labor Front deputy secretary-general Yang Hsu-wei (楊書瑋) said legislating minimum wage changes would help make employment more reasonable, transparent and fair.
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