Examination Yuan Vice President Chou Hung-hsien (周弘憲) yesterday told lawmakers that if he is approved by the legislature to be president of the body, an amendment to the Civil Service Protection Act (公務人員保障法) would be proposed to include anti-bullying regulations.
Chou made the pledge in his briefing to the legislature in a plenary session, during which lawmakers reviewed the qualifications of President William Lai’s (賴清德) Examination Yuan nominations.
The psychological well-being of government workers has come under public scrutiny after a Ministry of Labor employee committed suicide allegedly because of bullying from a supervisor.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Chou said that the Examination Yuan is in charge of enforcing regulations to protect the rights of civil servants, adding that it is the branch’s responsibility to provide a friendly and safe work environment.
It would propose an amendment to the act by including anti-bullying regulations if the legislature approves his nomination as Examination Yuan president, Chou said.
Currently, the Examination Yuan only has measures to prevent bullying in the workplace, he said.
Article 19 of the act stipulates that the safety for a civil servant to perform duties shall be ensured.
The article also requires government agencies to provide safety and sanitary measures for a civil servant to perform their duties, and the regulations should be jointly promulgated by the Examination Yuan and the Executive Yuan, Chou said.
However, the article is little more than a declarative statement, he said, adding that anti-bullying regulations should be added to the article so that all agencies are obligated to follow.
The Measures for the Safety and Health Protection of Public Servants (公務人員安全及衛生防護辦法), which are stipulated based on Article 19 of the act, states that bullying in occupational environments falls under the category of safety issues.
Civil servants can file complaints at the government agencies they work for, he said.
Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said that the measures have not been changed in 10 years, and civil servants who breach the measures would not be penalized either.
Chou said that the Civil Service Protection and Training Commission proposed an amendment to the measures in August, adding that it would soon finalize the revised measures and publish them.
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