Touch-panel manufacturer Young Fast Optoelectronics yesterday denied allegations that it had illegally imported workers, saying that 28 Chinese workers found by prosecutors at its Taiwan plant on Tuesday were there to receive training.
The company said the main purpose of the training is to allow the workers to become familiar with the manufacturing process for touch-panel sensors. It said this would help the workers better understand the manufacturing process and enhance their ability to identify inferior products.
Young Fast maintains operations in Taiwan, China and Vietnam. The operation in Taiwan focuses on the manufacture of touch-panel sensors, while the China facilities concentrate on touch-panel modules. The Vietnam operation is responsible for the making resistive touch-panels.
The controversy first emerged last month when labor rights groups accused the company of bringing in workers from its China plant under the guise of receiving training. They said the Chinese were, in fact, working in one of the firm’s plants in Taoyuan County. The influx of Chinese workers resulted in the dismissal of 16 Taiwanese workers, the groups said.
At the request of the National Immigration Agency, prosecutors led a raid of the plant on Tuesday. The 28 Chinese workers discovered there and eight Taiwanese staff members were taken to Taoyuan District Prosecutors Office for questioning.
The immigration agency said employers who hire illegal Chinese workers can be sentenced to up to two years in jail and fined up to NT$300,000.
An investigation by the immigration agency showed that between Oct. 13 last year and Sept. 15, Young Fast filed eight applications for a total of 112 skilled Chinese to make training trips to Taiwan, including the 28 individuals who are still in the country.
The visitors’ stays ranged between 19 days and two months and there are no records of any of them overstaying their visas, the agency said.
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