The Youth Labor Union wants the government to decommodify workers to minimize the impact of high unemployment rates.
Business closures and downsizings have contributed to soaring unemployment rates in Taiwan.
The Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics said last week that the jobless rate last month had hit a six-year high of 5.03 percent, with the number of unemployed reaching 549,000.
“The government’s definition of ‘unemployment’ means that the person is out of a job, ready to start anytime and is in the process of job-hunting or waiting for an offer,” said Liou You-shine (劉侑學), executive member of the Youth Labor Union.
“But many people may have given up on their job search after having tried for a long time and been unable to find a job. These ‘discouraged workers’ are not part of the unemployment statistics,” Liou said.
Combined with the 200,000 people currently on unpaid leave, which the Council of Labor Affairs announced earlier this month, the actual number of unemployed may be even higher, the union said.
Liou said that once the Lunar New Year holiday was over, the number of people thrown out of work by mass layoffs would rise, because it is customary for many local businesses to delay firing employees until the holiday is over.
“Losing one’s job is more than just about money and security,” Liou said. “Not being able to make loan payments on time will damage a person’s credit history. A worker’s self-esteem may also be hurt after losing his or her place in society.”
In order to minimize the impact that unemployment has on society, Liou called for the decommodification of workers, including increasing the amount and length of time for unemployment benefits, as well as an improvement in government schemes providing employment training, so that workers do not have to rely as much on their wages.
“For workers, not having to rely completely on conditions in the labor market would decrease the risks of group protests and improve the turnout rate to help workers become more united. This would help balance out the inequalities between employers and their employees,” he said.
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS