Two amputees attended a protest at the Taipower complex in Taipei City yesterday, requesting that the state-run corporation take workplace safety more seriously.
Su Huo-mu (蘇火木), an electricity worker from Tainan, had his right arm amputated following a workplace accident in 1998, for which his employer Shungfeng Electronics Corp (尚豐電氣) -- a contractor for Taiwan Power Corp (台電) -- has been held responsible.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
Just seven months before Su's accident, another electricity worker, Tsai Yung-mao (
"I'm a single father with three kids to raise and my aging father also depends on me. I don't know how to carry on with just one arm left. An employer with a conscience would not leave an employee of theirs in such a helpless situation," Tsai said.
Taking the long drive from southern Pingtung County, Tsai attended the protest at Taipower with Su and members of the Taiwan Association for Victims of Occupational Accidents and Diseases (
While Shungfeng is being held liable for both of the injuries, the two men said Taipower cannot be exempt from liability since it failed to ensure workplace safety was being enforced by its contractors.
"We tried to get the owners of the company -- a family-owned business -- to compensate us for our injuries, but they failed to obey a court summons and even transferred their property to other parties to avoid paying compensation. We won the lawsuits but can't get a penny at the end of the day," Su said, with his wife and three kids beside him.
"It is an outrage that ruthless people like the owners of Shungfeng can still get contracts from Taipower, despite their notorious record. [Taipower] seems to not care about the lives of the little guys like us," Su said.
Ku Yu-ling (顧玉玲), general-secretary of the Taiwan Association for Victims of Occupational Accidents and Diseases, said Taipower is liable for occupational injuries under the Labor Standards Law, which holds both the contract issuer and the contractor liable for failing to ensure workplace safety.
Ku said Taipower often awards contracts to bidders offering the lowest price without taking their quality into consideration. As part of the public sector, it should have known the regulations better and watched closely to make sure contractors fully enforced workplace safety.
"But after a lengthy process of negotiations and trials, we've found the state-run company is just as unscrupulous as the contractor itself," Ku said.
Ku said her association has assisted Su and Tsai in their suit against Shungfeng and Taipower in the Tainan District Court, requesting the two pay damages to the men injured in their workplace.
Speaking during talks with the protesters yesterday, Yang Chun-chuan (楊忠全), speaking on behalf of Taipower, insisted that the state-run corporation would appeal the case to the High Court and would not make payments unless it upheld the verdict of the district court.
"Taipower is not a charity, we can't give you money simply because of the unfortunate state you are in," Yang said.
He made no attempt to listen to the two men's arguments nor to consider the fact that they are having difficulty supporting their families and cannot afford prolonged and expensive legal suits.
Angered by Taipower's denial of all responsibility, Ku said that they will continue their protest and seek a resolution through the Council of Labor Affairs.
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