A massive earthquake that struck in Hualien in early April affected the county’s tourism industry, pushing the number of workers on formal unpaid leave higher in the first half of the month, the Ministry of Labor said yesterday.
The temblor on April 3, which measured 7.2 on the Richter scale, killed 18 people and injured more than 1,100, prompting the transportation and logistics, hospitality, and entertainment and leisure industries in the county to place more than 150 people on furlough, Labor Conditions and Employment Equality specialist Li Yi-husan (李怡萱) said.
As of Saturday, the number of furloughed workers in the local hotel, and food and beverage industry rose to 248 from 135 at the end of last month, while the figure for the transportation and logistics industry rose to 32 from zero, ministry data showed.
Photo: Wang Chin-yi, Taipei Times
The service support industry, which includes travel agencies, had placed 41 workers on furlough as of Saturday, up from 37 as of May 31, the data showed.
The ministry has provided assistance to affected workers in Hualien’s tourism industry in the form of subsidies allocated to employers to allow furloughed employees to receive training and keep their employment contracts intact, Li said.
In addition, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications has deployed a subsidy program to encourage people to visit Hualien to alleviate the effect of the earthquake on the tourism industry, Li added.
As of Saturday, the number of furloughed workers was 5,338, up 153 from 5,185 as of May 31, while the number of employers with unpaid leave programs fell to 262 from 263 over the 15-day period, the data showed.
The number of furloughed workers in the export-oriented manufacturing sector fell to 4,550 from 4,624 at the end of last month, but still accounted for more than 85 percent of the national total, including 2,704 registered in the information and electronics industry, the data showed.
A precision machinery maker and a construction material firm in the local manufacturing sector each put more than 100 workers on furlough, as orders received by the two companies had become unstable, Li said.
On the other hand, a maker of bicycle components stopped its unpaid leave program, putting about 120 people back on production lines as orders increased, Li said.
Most firms with furlough programs are small, or those that employ fewer than 50 people, the ministry said, adding that unpaid leave programs typically last for less than three months, with employees taking five to eight days of unpaid leave per month.
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