A proposal by Vice Premier Shih Jun-ji (施俊吉) to raise the minimum monthly wage to NT$30,000 by 2024 by 6 percent annual increments is a “mathematical” but impractical approach, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said on Monday during a television interview.
Shih on Tuesday last week said that the goal of raising the minimum monthly wage to NT$30,000 could be achieved in four to six years if the amount is increased by between 6 and 8 percent every year.
Asked if she would pledge to raise the minimum salary to NT$30,000 by 2024, Tsai said the government could not impose such a goal on economic development.
“If the economic conditions are good, if businesses are able to afford raising pay, I believe the salaries will continue to go up even without making changes to the minimum wage,” Tsai said.
Tsai’s administration has twice raised the minimum wage, from NT$20,008 to NT$22,000, which is a large increase compared with previous adjustments, she said.
Meanwhile, Premier William Lai (賴清德) yesterday reiterated his plan to boost investment to address the problem of low, stagnant salaries.
“The most effective means to solve the issue is to encourage investment in Taiwan,” Lai said during a visit to Miaoli County.
The Cabinet has put forward three proposals — raising the salary of public-sector employees by 3 percent in the hope of initiating across-the-board pay increases; implementing tax cuts to increase personal disposable income; and remove investment obstacles, such as industrial shortages, Lai said.
The “five plus two” industrial innovation plan and the Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program aim to upgrade and transform local industries, and develop a comprehensive infrastructure network that would also help invigorate the economy and raise salaries, Lai said.
During the television interview, Tsai said that the Cabinet proposed a 3 percent salary increase for public-sector workers in the hope that it would encourage private firms to give their employees pay raises.
All employers she has met have told her they have made plans to increase their employees’ salaries this year, the president said, adding that a number of surveys indicate that about 50 percent of firms are likely to give their employees a raise this year.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus deputy secretary-general William Tseng (曾銘宗) yesterday cast doubt over Tsai’s remark that more than half of firms are expected to give their employees pay raises this year.
If all businesses were to give their employees raises just to make the president look good, “Taiwan would be doomed,” Tseng said.
Fifty percent should be considered a “very pessimistic” forecast, he added, citing his stint as Financial Supervisory Commission chairman, during which time between 60 and 70 percent of businesses gave their employees pay raises each year.
Meanwhile, KMT Legislator Ma Wen-chun (馬文君) said that if the government were to initiate a third drive to amend the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) it would probably incur the wrath of the public.
The government has no plans to further amend the act because it is unwilling to own up to its mistake of pushing through the latest amendments this month, which have sparked complaints, especially among young people, Ma said.
The government should figure out what young people really want, she said, adding that low wages have remained the main source of complaints.
Additional reporting by Sean Lin
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said that a surge in respiratory illnesses in China has been caused by at least seven types of pathogens, and small children, elderly people and immunocompromised people should temporarily avoid unnecessary visits to China. The recent outbreak of respiratory illnesses in China is mainly in the north and among children, CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said on Monday. Data released by the Chinese National Health Commission on Sunday showed that among children aged one to four, the main pathogens were influenza viruses and rhinoviruses, while among children aged five to 14, the main pathogens
A new poll of Taiwanese voters found the top opposition candidate for president jumping past the ruling party’s hopeful into the lead position ahead of January’s election — the latest twist in a drama-filled race. Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) had an approval rating of 31.9 percent versus 29.2 percent for the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the poll released yesterday by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation showed. The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), ranked third with 23.6 percent, according to the survey conducted
A New Taipei City hotpot restaurant could be fined after a rat dropped from the ceiling and landed on a customer’s plate last week, the New Taipei City Department of Health said yesterday after conducting an inspection. A woman recently posted on the “I am a Banciao resident” (我是板橋人) social media group saying that she had been eating with a friend at Chien Tu Shabu Shabu Hotpot Restaurant’s Shuangshi B branch in Banciao District (板橋). “While still eating, a big rat suddenly dropped down from the ceiling, landing on a plate next to a hotpot,” she said. “Later on, a member of
Actress Hu Ling (胡伶) on Saturday became the first Chinese movie star to walk the red carpet of the Golden Horse Awards since 2019, when China boycotted Taiwan’s biggest awards show over political tensions. Beijing banned its entertainers from joining the awards, dubbed the Chinese-language Oscars, after documentary director Fu Yu (傅榆) voiced support for Taiwan’s formal independence in an acceptance speech in 2018. There were no films from China in the 2019 nomination list and several Hong Kong movies dropped out that year, while several big commercial productions were conspicuously absent at both the 2020 and 2021 awards. However, Hu, nominated for
RSS