Kaohsiung established the nation’s one and only Museum of Labor in 2010, since when it has held 12 exhibitions and attracted 1.41 million visitors. In order to coordinate with the development policy for Kaohsiung’s Pier-2 Arts Center, the museum has been relocated to a new site in the Love River’s cultural corridor, neighboring the Kaohsiung Museum of History and Kaohsiung Film Archive. Together, they are the cultural landmarks of Kaohsiung.
The Kaohsiung Museum of Labor was reopened on July 25, with workers who used to labor at the piers and in the shipbreaking yards and export processing zone invited to share the ups and downs of their work. The museum’s interactive simulations made the workers feel as if they had traveled through a time tunnel to see Kaohsiung as they remembered it from the past. In the interactive and experience section of the museum, gunny bags are provided for the public to carry so that they could learn about the hardship that pier workers experienced in carrying and moving goods. The public can even operate sewing machines to learn about the work conditions of clothing factory workers.
Li Min-hui worked in the export processing zone for three decades, sewing clothes in a factory that made adult clothing. She said that in those days she was paid according to how many articles of clothing she could sew; the more articles she sewed, the more she earned. It took five seconds to sew a seam and she worked eight hours per day, which means she sewed at least 5,000 seams a day, and tens of millions of garments were sewn by her hands.
Photos: Chang Chung-i, Taipei Times
照片：自由時報記者張忠義攝
Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Wu Hung-mo remarked that Kaohsiung used to be the heart of Taiwan’s heavy industry and the kingdom of shipbreaking. The proliferation of export processing zones began from Kaohsiung. That is why human rights campaigns and labor movements emerged earlier in Kaohsiung than in other cities. Precisely because of Kaohsiung’s rich labor culture, there is a rather profound significance to establishing the labor museum in Kaohsiung.
Kaohsiung City Labor Affairs Bureau Director-General Chung Kung-chao says that all exhibitions at the Kaohsiung Museum of Labor are free of charge. Opening hours are 9am to 5pm from Tuesday to Sunday. To make a reservation for a group tour or make an inquiry, call (07) 216-0509.
(Liberty Times, translated by Ethan Zhan)
Photos: Chang Chung-i, Taipei Times
照片：自由時報記者張忠義攝
高市九十九年成立全國唯一的勞工博物館，舉辦過十二檔展覽，吸引一百四十一萬參觀人次。為配合駁二藝術特區發展政策，遷移到愛河文化廊帶的新址，與鄰近的歷史博物館、高雄市電影館成為高市文化地標。
勞工博物館七月二十五日重新開幕，邀請早年在碼頭、拆船廠與加工出口區的勞工朋友分享甘苦談，並搭配互動場景，讓勞工們彷彿穿過時光隧道，看到記憶中的老高雄。互動體驗區讓民眾可親自搬麻布袋，體會碼頭工人搬運貨物的辛勞，還可實際操作裁縫車，了解成衣廠勞工的工作情景。
曾在加工出口區工作卅年的李敏慧，從事成衣廠的車縫工作，她說當時是按件計酬，做得多賺得多，車縫一趟要五秒，每天做八小時，至少車縫五千次，她經手的衣服少說也有幾千萬件。
副市長吳宏謀指出，高雄曾是台灣重工業的心臟、拆船王國的核心，加工出口區也從高雄開始，因而高雄市的人權運動、勞工運動比其他城市更早。正因為有這樣豐富的勞動文化背景，勞工博物館在高雄市設立有其深遠意義。
勞工局長鍾孔炤表示，高雄市勞工博物館所有展覽均為免費參觀，開放時間為每週二至週日九時至下午五時，如需要團體預約導覽或有相關問題，可洽詢：（07）216-0509。
〔自由時報記者洪臣宏／高雄報導〕
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