Mon, Nov 01, 1999 page2

• Vietnamese labor coming to Taiwan

  • By Yu Sen-lun / STAFF REPORTER
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  Workers from Vietnam today become the fifth source of foreign labor for Taiwan, following a recent agreement with Hanoi to further open channels for the import of foreign labor, according to Chan Huo-shen (詹?鶗?/CHINESE>), chairman of the Council of Labor Affairs (3狻e會).

  At the same time, however, Ho emphasized that a basic premise of the introduction of Vietnamese labor is that the total number of foreign workers in Taiwan will remain the same. It was estimated by manpower agents that in the early stages of the policy, over 20,000 workers will be introduced. The move most likely will affect job security for Filipino workers.

  The CLA has already informed manpower recruitment agents to reduce Filipino applicants and hire more workers from other countries.

  Higher costs, said Chan, is the major concern.

  "Filipino workers have the highest rate of illegal job abandonment. And the suspension of direct flights between Taiwan and the Philippines has also raised the cost for (importing) Filipino workers," he said.

  Due to administrative procedures for recruitment, CLA officials said workers would arrive from Vietnam by the end of this year at the earliest.

  Taiwan and Vietnam signed a labor agreement on May 6, confirming their labor import policy. According to the agreement, a direct-hiring scheme was introduced for the employment of foreign labor in Taiwan for the first time. Employers may apply for laborers through manpower agents, as with workers from four other countries -- Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia -- or directly from the Vietnamese Cultural and Economic Office in Taipei.

  Taiwan now has 286,805 foreign workers. Thai and Filipino workers are the most numerous. There are 138,587 Thai and 116,919 Filipino workers, making up 48 percent and 40 percent of the total respectively.

  According to Chan, there is no limit on the number of incoming Vietnamese, nor occupation restrictions. "It's all up to the wishes of the employers," said Chan.

  Vietnamese workers will be able to take up most jobs open to foreign workers, such as industrial work, construction work, domestic work and nursing.

  "It can create a balance of foreign labor employment, said Steve Kuan (官???, chairman of the Taipei Association of Manpower Agents (台北市?H?O仲?集虓~|P業?蔆|).

  He said in the past, employers relied on Filipino workers as domestic helpers and nursing aides.

  "But we have all grown tired of constant and unreasonable demands from Filipino workers and their officials in Taiwan," said Kuan.

  Kuan and members of the association have been to Vietnam observing and investigating workers. He said Vietnamese workers are suitable for hi-tech electronic industries and domestic work. Filipinos have occupied approximately 50 percent of these jobs.

  "In the early stages, more than 20,000 jobs may be replaced by Vietnamese, and in one year's time, the number may raise to 60,000, which is around half the number of Filipino workers currently working in Taiwan," he said.

  According to the labor agreement, agents may charge a NT$30,000 agent fee and a monthly service fee of NT$1,200. The standards for the charges were adopted from that for Thai workers, Kuan said. The current fee for a Filipino worker is NT$56,000 plus a NT$10,000 service charge.
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