The Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) encouraged workers who plan to apply for labor insurance loans to file their applications soon because the last day to apply is Friday.
This is the seventh year the council has offered loans from the National Labor Insurance Fund to low-income families to help them through the Lunar New Year holidays.
This year, the labor insurance loan program started accepting applications on Jan. 4. Council officials said this year’s loan program saw a sharp surge in submitted applications in the first three days compared with previous years.
In the three days after the Bureau of Labor Insurance began taking applications, more than 50,000 people submitted applications.
The nearly 30,000 applications on the first day was double the number of applications submitted on the first day last year.
However, after several days, the frenzy for loans cooled down. The latest statistics showed that in the two weeks after the council began taking applications, about 120,000 applications for loans were submitted. Of these, more than 40,000 were approved and the applicants have received or will soon receive payments.
Council officials urged applicants to complete the process at one of the 146 branches of the Land Bank of Taiwan before Friday’s deadline, saying the council will not accept late applications.
The council has set aside a budget of NT$20 billion (US$629 million) for the loans this year, which means that up to 200,000 applicants could benefit from the fund. Council officials said that based on current trends, the budget would not need to be expanded because it is estimated that it will be enough to cover loans for all approved applicants.
Applicants who have participated in the national labor insurance program for at least 15 years with no unpaid debt to the insurance program can apply for a loan of up to NT$100,000, with an annual interest rate of 1.35 percent.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Labor Insurance reported that the number of workers insured under the national labor insurance program has recently risen at a quicker-than-expected rate.
About 9 million workers were insured as of the end of October, a peak that was reached three months ahead of official estimates.
The bureau cited several reasons for the faster-than-expected growth, including a recent policy that requires workers holding more than one job to be insured for every job, as well as general growth in the workforce.
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
Typhoon Krathon, a military airshow and rehearsals for Double Ten National Day celebrations might disrupt flights at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in the first 10 days of next month, the airport’s operator said yesterday. Taoyuan International Airport Corp said in a statement that it has established a response center after the Central Weather Administration issued a sea warning for Krathon, and urged passengers to remain alert to the possibility of disruptions caused by the storm in the coming days. Flight schedules might also change while the air force conducts rehearsals and holds a final airshow for Double Ten National Day, it added. Although
SEMICONDUCTORS: TSMC is able to produce 2-nanometer chips and mass production is expected to be launched by next year, the company said In leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing China is behind Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) by at least 10 years as the Taiwanese chipmaker’s manufacturing process has progressed to 2 nanometers, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said yesterday. Wu made the remarks during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee when asked by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) about a report published in August by the Chinese version of Nikkei Asia that said Taiwan’s lead over China in chip manufacturing was only three years. She asked Wu Cheng-wen if the report was an accurate
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
RSS