The minimum wage for live-in migrant caregivers and domestic helpers on contracts dated from yesterday has been increased to NT$20,000 (US$668) from NT$17,000, the Ministry of Labor said on Wednesday.
The increase of more than 17 percent is the first since 2015 for family-based migrant workers, whose minimum wage was NT$8,250 lower than the standard minimum wage.
The new minimum wage would apply to workers signing their first work or new contracts in Taiwan, the ministry said.
Photo: Yao Kai-shiou, Liberty Times
However, the new minimum wage would not affect contracts signed before yesterday.
The ministry also suggested that employers increase the monthly salaries of live-in migrant caregivers and domestic helpers by NT$1,000 after three years of employment, and a further NT$1,000 per month after six years of employment, saying the increases would help retain workers.
Low-income and lower-middle-income households employing live-in migrant caregivers and domestic helpers would be entitled to a monthly government subsidy of NT$3,000 to cover the minimum wage increase for up to three years, or a maximum of NT$108,000 in total, the ministry said.
Other employers would receive a monthly subsidy of NT$1,500 for up to four months, it added.
The government estimates that it would distribute up to about NT$1.71 billion in subsidies to about 96,000 households over the next three years, the ministry said.
Ministry data showed that as of the end of June, 201,409 migrant workers were employed as family-based caretakers and 1,433 as domestic helpers.
The data also showed that 468,806 migrant employees worked in industrial jobs and 15,530 in care institutions.
Those two groups are covered by the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法), which makes them eligible for a minimum wage of NT$25,250.
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