President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday that the government would continue to see to the needs of workers and improve the protection of their rights. He added, however, that Taiwan's future would not only depend on the toil and diligence of workers, but also on their innovation and knowledge.
Chen made the remarks on the eve of Labor Day, as he received individuals selected as this year's national "exemplary workers."
The president said that work is important because it is a basic human right, and that, through work, people acquire the resour-ces to survive and raise subsequent generations.
The administration has vigorously promoted the protection of human rights and has launched proposals to amend various labor laws -- and this constitutes a major step toward further buttressing workers' rights, Chen said.
Facing the trends of globalization and the knowledge-based economy, Chen continued, the government must accelerate its efforts to keep pace with the changes and upgrade the nation's industrial structure in order to boost Taiwan's competitiveness. An increase in the knowledge of all workers would be necessary for such a change to take place, he added.
Chen said that the Council of Labor Affairs is working to nurture a "prepared labor force" through knowledge-based-economy education, vocational training and employment services. He added that related mechanisms, such as social insurance and unemployment benefits are also being strengthened to build a comprehensive job-safety net.
Responding to the issues of the middle-age unemployed, work accidents, labor-safety education and foreign laborers -- issues raised by those in attendance at the event -- the president said that the government needs to assess its performance in such areas and continue to improve, despite having already pushed through several labor-related laws.
Regarding the issue of foreign workers, Chen said that the priority must be to take care of domestic workers. Although the number of foreign laborers in Taiwan cannot be reduced to zero immediately, he went on, it has steadily decreased over the years.
Meanwhile, at a separate occasion to mark the upcoming Labor Day today, a group of DPP legislators yesterday proposed an amendment to a draft bill for retirement funds that would scrap the original three-option version in favor of a single-option version that would be applicable to an additional 4 million workers.
The lawmakers said that the original version only covered the 5 million workers who had full-time employment with definite employers, while those who worked part-time for indefinite employers were "unfairly" excluded.
The new version will allow "anyone who contributes his/her labor to the service of society" to enjoy the benefits of a retirement system that can later be turned into a national annuity system, the lawmakers said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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