The number of furloughed workers this quarter has again surpassed 10,000 to reach 11,201, after 1,346 more were added since last quarter, Ministry of Labor data showed on Wednesday.
The number of firms putting workers on unpaid leave totaled 632, up 56 from last quarter, the ministry said.
Of the 1,346 newly furloughed workers, 93 percent (1,256) are in the manufacturing sector, it said.
Photo: Lee Ching-hui, Taipei Times
The historically stable information technology (IT) industry was hit particularly hard, with 880 people put on unpaid leave this quarter alone, Department of Labor Standards and Equal Employment Director Huang Wei-chen (黃維琛) said.
Two electronic components makers have decided to add an additional four to five days of unpaid leave each month for 550 and 250 workers respectively due to lagging international orders, he said.
In the bicycle industry, which has furloughed more workers in recent months, the situation is still heavily dependent on orders, Huang said.
For instance, one company took more than 200 employees off of unpaid leave, but another extended furlough for about 80, he said.
Wholesalers and retailers also furloughed more than 80 people this quarter, although most were at smaller firms, Huang said, adding that it is unrelated to the manufacturing slump.
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