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 (
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.
MAKING WAVES: China’s maritime militia could become a nontraditional threat in war, clogging up shipping lanes to prevent US or Japanese intervention, a report said About 1,900 Chinese ships flying flags of convenience and fishing vessels that participated in China’s military exercises around Taiwan last month and in January last year have been listed for monitoring, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) Deputy Director-General Hsieh Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said yesterday. Following amendments to the Commercial Port Act (商港法) and the Law of Ships (船舶法) last month, the CGA can designate possible berthing areas or deny ports of call for vessels suspected of loitering around areas where undersea cables can be accessed, Oceans Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said. The list of suspected ships, originally 300, had risen to about
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
STREAMLINED: The dedicated funding would allow the US to transfer equipment to Taiwan when needed and order upgraded replacements for stockpiles, a source said The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a defense appropriations bill totaling US$838.7 billion, of which US$1 billion is to be allocated to reinforcing security cooperation with Taiwan and US$150 million to replace defense articles provided to the nation. These are part of the Consolidated Appropriation Act, which the US House yesterday passed with 341 votes in favor and 88 against. The act must be passed by the US Senate before Friday next week to avoid another government shutdown. The US House Committee on Appropriations on Monday unveiled the act, saying that it allocates US$1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative
RSS