More than 10 million people are to be affected after disability premiums and mandatory insurance rules were overhauled yesterday, as the Legislative Yuan passed the Labor Occupational Hazard Insurance and Protection Act (勞工職業災害保險及保護法).
Individuals are to receive payments matching their salary for the first and second month, and 70 percent each subsequent month, up from 70 percent in the first year and 50 percent in the second year in the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法), the new regulations say.
Payouts are capped at two years, they say.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The Permanent Disability Pension, which was previously calculated based on time spent at a company, is to be calculated based on the degree or level of disability.
A completely disabled person would receive payments equal to 70 percent of their salary, severe disabilities would qualify for 50 percent payments and partially disabled people would receive 20 percent, the new act says.
Families of people killed on the job would be entitled to 50 percent of the salary per month, it says.
All employees of registered companies have to be insured, instead of employees at companies with a headcount of at least five, it says.
The minimum premium for workers is tied to the minimum wage, while the maximum is NT$72,800, which is more than what 90 percent of workers earn, it says.
Anticipating the act’s passage, legislators and labor rights groups earlier yesterday held a news conference in front of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.
Taiwan Occupation Safety and Health president Liao Hui-fang (廖蕙芳) said that the act, once promulgated, would be the first law providing a legal basis for occupational hazards disputes.
It is a milestone for Taiwanese labor safety, Liao said.
The labor sector has been asking for such legislation for more than a decade, and the efforts of lawmakers to push it through before Labor Day on Saturday next week is the best gift they could offer to workers, she said.
Labor rights organizations would keep a close watch on the government as the regulations are implemented, she said.
Kaohsiung City Confederation of Trade Unions deputy director Chiang Chien-hsing (江健興) said that the act would not only protect workers, but also reduce risks for employers.
New Power Party Legislator Claire Wang (王婉諭) said she was happy that the legislation included migrant workers under the mandatory insurance policies.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said he hoped that the law, once promulgated, would truly help workers by preventing occupational hazards and upholding a reasonable payout scheme.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
BREACH OF CONTRACT: The bus operators would seek compensation and have demanded that the manufacturer replace the chips with ones that meet regulations Two bus operators found to be using buses with China-made chips are to demand that the original manufacturers replace the systems and provide compensation for breach of contract, the Veterans Affairs Council said yesterday. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) yesterday said that Da Nan Bus Co and Shin-Shin Bus Co Ltd have fielded a total of 82 buses that are using Chinese chips. The bus models were made by Tron-E, while the systems provider was CYE Electronics, Lin said. Lin alleged that the buses were using chips manufactured by Huawei subsidiary HiSilicon Co, which presents a national security risk if the
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