Employment support would be expanded to six additional industries, with workers on reduced hours eligible to receive up to NT$12,100 per month, the Ministry of Labor announced today.
The policy is to be effective retroactively from Aug. 1.
Changes in the global economy, such as US tariffs and the New Taiwan dollar’s exchange rate, are projected to impact up to 42,000 employees nationwide, the ministry said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
The ministry in March launched employment stabilization measures for three sectors: rubber products, machinery and equipment, and other transportation or parts manufacturing, Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said.
These measures have now been expanded to include workers in six new industries: food production, textiles, plastic production, metal manufacturing, electrical equipment manufacturing and auto parts production, Hung said.
Additionally, the ministry raised the subsidy rate for lost wages from 50 to 70 percent at a maximum of NT$12,100 per month, which can be combined with financial support from the ministry’s “Recharge Program for Workers” that provides skills training for employees who are furloughed or whose hours have been reduced, Hung said.
For example, a worker whose hours were cut and monthly salary fell from NT$45,800 to the minimum wage of NT$28,590 could totally avoid losing their total income through a combination of labor subsidies, the ministry said.
The wage subsidy program could provide up to NT$12,100, and if the employee chooses to participate in the recharge skills training program, its training allowance could provide the remaining NT$5,110, it said.
Employment insurance data from the ministry show that the nine covered industries have a combined 1.05 million insured workers.
Not every worker would face reduced hours and not all companies export to the US, Hung said, adding that only 2,761 workers currently have reduced hours.
To be eligible for the program, employees in the designated industries must have agreed with their employers to reduce working hours for at least 30 days and registered their case with the local labor authorities.
Employees must apply within 90 days of a 30-day period of reduced hours, either online or through a local Workforce Development Agency office.
Accepted applicants can claim subsidies for up to six months.
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