The Ministry of Labor yesterday unveiled a draft management act governing digital delivery services, in a move to regulate wages and working conditions in the booming industry.
The proposed legislation would be sent to the Executive Yuan for approval after a seven-day public comment period, Department of Employment Relations Director Wang Hou-wei (王厚偉) told a news conference in Taipei.
The bill, titled “the act governing delivery workers’ rights and delivery platforms,” would provide clear guidance for delivery drivers governing wages, the right to disconnect and for-cause termination, he said.
Photo: Lee Ching-hui, Taipei Times
It would place delivery platforms under the provisions of the Disaster Prevention and Protection Act (天然災害入法) authorizing mandatory shutdowns when local governments suspend classes and work for natural disasters and other emergencies, he said.
In addition, delivery services would be required to obtain commercial, group accident, liability and occupational injury insurance for drivers to protect the basic labor rights of their employees, Wang said.
The draft act would prevent wage theft by requiring delivery services to inform drivers of their compensation on each job, which must add up to at least 1.25 times the minimum hourly wage, he said.
This rate is determined after including the estimated costs of fuel and vehicle maintenance, and idle time spent in transit, which are expenditures that delivery services do not cover for their employees, Wang said.
Should the law go into effect next year, delivery drivers would receive pay equivalent to NT$245 per hour, slightly less than the NT$290 stipulated currently, but with less leeway for employers to reduce their pay, he said.
The proposed bill would bar delivery services from compelling drivers to remain online, and also require services to inform drivers of their pay, and pickup and delivery locations before they can accept an order, Wang said.
The draft law would list valid causes for terminating drivers and place the burden of proving the legitimacy of termination on employers, while authorizing independent panels for investigating labor grievances within the industry, he said.
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