Premier Yu Shyi-kun vowed yesterday to cut occupational accidents and protect the health and safety of laborers.
Yu made the remarks at a ceremony marking Workers Mourning Day, a day to commemorate workers injured on the job, killed, disabled or who have suffered occupational illnesses, at the Workers Park in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan.
The premier, Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) Chairwoman Chen Chu (陳菊), Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), KMT lawmakers Chiang Chi-wen (江綺雯) and Ho Tsai-feng (侯彩鳳) and representatives of the Workers Mourning Association joined hands to lift up a giant safety net to symbolize that the government and private sector will be working together to build a comprehensive safety net to protect workers.
PHOTO: LU CHUN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
The premier and others also presided over a ceremony to introduce a NT$12 million (US$342,857) commemorative monument. The design and inscription on the monument have yet to be decided and its construction is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Yu, addressing the ceremony, noted that an occupational accident protection law was passed by the legislature at the end of last year, marking a milestone in the protection of workers, and which he said was a positive step toward recognizing the contributions of laborers.
CLA head Chen asked workers to pay as much attention to their job safety as they do to earning a living.
Kaohsiung Mayor Hsieh said that the contribution of workers is on a par with that of soldiers, who offer their sweat and blood for the good of the nation. The Kaohsiung City Government has appropriated between NT$100 million and NT$200 million (US$2.85 million and US$5.71 million) annually for the establishment of a labor rights fund, which Hsieh said is the first of its kind in Taiwan.
During the ceremony, a few worker groups waved banners to appeal to the premier not to raise national health insurance fees.
Also, a woman whose husband died in an accident while doing maintenance work for the Kaohsiung refinery of the Chinese Petroleum Corp (CPC), brought her two children to the event to voice her concerns that the CPC is not doing enough for worker safety.
She was not allowed to approach the premier, but her letter of appeal was accepted by Yang Kuo-cheng (楊國楨), head of an association for the victims of occupational accidents, who said he would pass it on to the premier.
To observe the day, similar commemorative activities were held around the country.
In Taipei, around 300 local and foreign laborers and the families of workers who were killed, injured or disabled on the job gathered at St. Christopher's Church, a favorite meeting place for workers from the Philippines in Taipei, to join 168 countries around the world in the lighting of candles to show their solidarity for workers' safety rights.
The participants sang songs and reminisced about their departed loved-ones and offered prayers to those killed and injured at the workplace.
They also lit candles to memorialize all those who have been killed on the job around the world and observed a minute of silence. They also tied a red ribbon around their thumbs to remind themselves and others of this important day.
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