New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Chiu Hsien-chih (邱顯智) yesterday asked the Ministry of Labor to set new rules to better protect workers from heat-related injuries, including rules for breaks on high-temperature days.
Citing data from the Central Weather Bureau, Chiu said that Taipei last month saw eight days with temperatures exceeding 38?C, adding that the city had already seen 12 such days earlier in the year.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 1,608 people sought emergency medical attention from May to July due to heat injuries, Chiu said, adding that this was the highest in a decade.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
In July, 659 people with heat injuries were admitted to emergency rooms in 181 hospitals across the nation, which was 1.8 times higher year-on-year, he said.
Article 6 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法) stipulates that employers must provide equipment and facilities to prevent workers from sustaining high-temperature related injuries, and those failing to do so could face fines of between NT$30,000 and NT$300,000, Chiu said.
Although the Ministry of Labor had conducted 2,225 labor inspections in outdoor work environments last year and found 1,217 cases where employers contravened the law, the ministry only issued penalties in one case, Chiu said, adding that the labor ministry in most cases just told employers to address the problems in a timely manner.
The current rules on labor management in high-temperature environments focus on indoor environments, such as factories, Chiu said, adding that the rules should be revised.
The labor ministry should also consider whether outdoor workers deserve more compensation, as they face greater health risks, he said.
New Taipei City Confederation of Trade Unions chairman Hung Ching-fu (洪清福) said that a majority of the accidents happen in the summer.
“Heat and humidity impedes workers’ reaction times. We think that workers should be given a break when the temperature is above 37?C, and those break times should be paid and included in their working hours,” said Hung, who works for Taiwan Power Co.
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