More than 16,000 foreign workers in Taiwan have received funeral subsidies over the past five years for the death of a parent, spouse or child outside Taiwan, the Bureau of Labor Insurance said.
Bureau officials said foreign workers had the same rights as those enjoyed by Taiwanese, adding that according to international labor standards, there cannot be any discrimination against foreign workers, which led the bureau to amend the Labor Insurance Act (勞保條例) in 2002 to ensure this requirement was met.
Officials also said that because of the anti-discrimination rule, insurance rates for foreign workers were the same as those for Republic of China nationals and there were no plans to amend the laws.
Article 62 of the act stipulates that when an insured worker’s parents, children or spouse passes away, they can apply for funeral subsidies.
If the subsidy is for the death of a parent or spouse, the worker can receive up to three months of the amount paid for insurance each month, while in the case of the death of a child who is 12 years or older, the worker is entitled to two-and-a-half months. If the child is under 12 years old, the worker is entitled to one-and-a-half months of the average monthly insurance premium.
Statistics from the bureau showed that the number of -foreign workers filing for and receiving funeral subsidies had risen steadily over the past five years. In 2006, 2,600 requests were granted, amounting to a total of NT$160 million (US$ 5.5 million). This rose to 3,400 cases in 2007, a total of more than NT$200 million, and 4,000 in 2009, amounting to NT$250 million.
The bureau’s data showed a sharp drop to about 1,000 cases last year.
Officials at the bureau said the gradual increase in the number of applications and funds paid out each year was because the number of foreign workers in Taiwan had risen in recent years.
Translated by Jake Chung, Staff Writer
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