The government should offer allowances to recent graduates seeking employment until the nation’s job market improves, the Legislative Yuan’s Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Bureau said in a report on Saturday.
Fewer than one-fifth of recent graduates have landed jobs this year, the bureau said, citing a survey.
The COVID-19 pandemic has dried up the job market in Taiwan as businesses affected by the pandemic have stopped hiring, the report said.
Photo courtesy of New Taipei City Government
Of the 87.3 percent of graduates surveyed who said that they want to work, only 19.6 percent have found jobs, it said.
This means that about 180,000 new graduates are still unemployed, the report said.
“We are seeing graduates who started looking for work at the beginning of the year, and half a year later they still have not found anything. Most graduates can support themselves for an average of two months without work,” the bureau said. “About 39.6 percent of the graduates have no savings.”
Of those seeking employment, 89.8 percent have reported experiencing symptoms of anxiety, a three-year high, it said.
The government’s latest pandemic-relief package offers businesses a subsidy of NT$30,000 for each graduate they hire, but companies do not have any vacant positions, the bureau said.
“The government must not overlook these vulnerable students who are looking for work. Our advice is to give them allowances to help them get through this difficult time,” it said.
The bureau suggested that the government create short-term work opportunities to give graduates temporary employment and help them “gain valuable work experience to make them better prepared for entering the workforce.”
“At the same time, increased subsidies could be offered to academic institutions and civic groups to offer online courses that teach job-hunting skills and strengthen graduates’ multidisciplinary knowledge to make them more competitive,” the report said.
Schools should also offer counseling to help graduates cope with the emotional stress of prolonged unemployment, it said.
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