Proposed legal changes will deprive workers of the rights, labor leaders said yesterday.
The Cabinet has presented to the legislature a draft of the Labor Three Law (
PHOTO: CHU FEI-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
"Once the Cabinet's draft has cleared the Legislative Yuan, there will be more restrictions on workers. Teachers, civil servants and those in state-run enterprises will be barred from forming unions," said Lu Tien-lin (
People working in the areas of national defense, utilities and air-traffic control would be denied the right to strike under the proposed law. Workers in telecommunications, transportation, public health, refineries, hospitals and energy would have to go through a 30-day cooling-off period before going on strike.
Leaders representing workers in the airline industry, energy sector, national defense and education held a press conference yesterday to denounce the draft.
Teachers said planned changes to the Labor Union Law (
"Only recently when the National Teachers Union (全國教師工會) joined an international teachers' organization did we realize that Taiwan is the only country to obstruct teachers from forming labor unions," said Chang Chuo-chin (張焯青), secretary-general of the teachers union.
The union cited a UN statement that says "everyone has the right to form a union or join a union" to argue that teachers in Taiwan should have equal rights, and questioned the government's claim that the country is rooted in democratic values and human rights.
People First Party Legislator Lin Hui-kuan (
"In 2000, in his labor policy proposal, President Chen Shui-bian (
Labor organizations may have to seek international aid if the legislature passes the Cabinet's draft, Lin added.
Second reading of the bill, a strong indicator of whether it will be passed into law, is scheduled for today in the legislature.
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