A job advertisement posted by National Chung Hsing University, which is looking for people with at least six years of experience for a part-time teaching position without offering “hourly wages due to the class’ mandatory nature,” might be creating an unhealthy precedent in academia that could follow the practice of forced unpaid leave implemented by corporations, critics said.
To see a national university post such an advertisement was “chilling,” lawyer Lu Chiu-yuan (呂秋遠) said on Facebook, adding that he thinks Taiwanese work environments should not turn into a setting where employers with high incomes implement “ruthless” cost-cutting measures to achieve zero overhead, or “free,” services.
National universities are in no shortage of funds, Taiwan Higher Education Union spokesperson Lin Por-yee (林柏儀) said, adding that the university was opening a can of worms by setting a precedent for not paying its part-time instructors.
While there are people who are willing to teach classes for free, many are waiting for full-time career opportunities at national universities, Lin said, adding that the union is against hiring instructors without paying them.
The university’s College of Agricultural and Natural Resources dean Chen Shu-chun (陳樹群) said the job advertisement was aimed at hiring instructors with practical experience to help students have a better understanding of the course.
The instructors would be given job contracts, Chen said, adding that a regulation stops them from paying hourly wages, as it states that instructors who do not exceed three hours of class time per week cannot be paid hourly wages and cannot be considered members of the staff.
The college is paying the instructors by allocating funds under travel expenses, Chen added.
“We wanted to state that fact in the advertisement, but the language is apparently not clear enough,” Chen said, adding that it should have said the people who would be hired for this job would not be considered actual staff.
University secretary-general Tsai Ching-piao (蔡清標) said that the college was asked to rephrase the advertisement.
The college posted the advertisement in October, looking for instructors with at least six years of experience or with an international bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture and recreation management.
The advertisement said that the course was “voluntary and will not be paid on an hourly basis.”
Universities are allowed to hire independently, but they must adhere to certain procedures, Ministry of Education Department of Higher Education Director Nicole Lee (李彥儀) said.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
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
RSS