Executive Yuan spokesman Philip Yang (楊永明) said yesterday the government had no plan to decouple foreign workers’ wages from the minimum wage in Taiwan because such a policy would be “unfeasible.”
“From the perspective of national law and international norms, it is a complex legal and ethical issue that raises human rights concerns. The Executive Yuan has the same view as the Presidential Office on this issue,” Yang told a press conference.
“There is no point of divergence on the issue between the Presidential Office and the Executive Yuan,” he added when asked to comment on reported disagreements over the issue between President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Premier Sean Chen (陳冲).
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Local media reported that during the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) Central Standing Committee meeting on Wednesday, Ma said he supported Council of Labor Affairs Minister Jennifer Wang (王如玄) in insisting on retaining the same minimum wage system for local and foreign workers, preferring to focus on brand names and innovation as long-term strategies to enhance the country’s competitive edge rather than to engage in a race to the bottom in terms of wages.
Ma’s remarks came one day after Chen said in the legislature that the only way to adopt a two-track minimum wage system would be to establish “virtual offshore” areas to exclude the application of the minimum wage rule under the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) to employees in those areas.
Chen mentioned the idea again during an interview with the CtiTV on Wednesday night.
The delinking of the minimum wage for domestic and foreign workers is not allowed under the current legal system, but it was worth considering under what circumstance the wage rules for foreign workers could be considered separately of minimum wage regulations, he said.
“That’s why I proposed the idea of ‘virtual offshore’ area,” he said.
Chen said the idea of a “virtual offshore area” was an alternative to a possible free economic demonstration zone, a pilot project the government is looking to implement as it prepares the way for accession to a future Trans-Pacific Partnership trade bloc.
The proposal that would allow for free movement of capital, personnel, goods, and information is being formulated by Council of Economic and Development Minister Yiing Chii-ming (尹啟銘) and should be ready in about a year, Chen said, adding: “We will communicate with concerned parties about the issue.”
Taking issue with Chen over his remark that a “virtual offshore area” would have to be established for a dual wage system to be feasible, a labor group staged a protest outside the Executive Yuan yesterday morning.
Taiwan Labor Front secretary-general Sun Yu-lien (孫友聯) said that a dual wage system would benefit only employers. It would legitimize exploitation of migrant workers and dissuade employers from hiring local workers.
Sun said Chen’s comment was “outrageously rash” and did not offer a likely way to resolve the problem.
The minimum wage debate was triggered last week when legislators proposed the introduction of a dual minimum wage system to help protect local workers.
KMT Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) said that Taiwanese companies have been forced to close or move overseas because of -increasingly higher wages for foreign workers, which in turn has cost domestic workers their jobs. The legislators suggested that the business sector be left to determine the minimum wage for foreign workers.
Additional reporting by CNA
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS