Press Statement in Taiwan
28 July 2004

Reference: Mr. Aurelio Estrada
Asia Pacific Mission for Migrants (APMM), No. 2 Jordan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
Telephone: (852) 2723-7536; Fax: (852) 2735-4559;
E-mail:apmm@hknet.com

CLA Must Ensure the Protection of Migrant Workers and Implement Standard Working Contract

We are concerned by the proposals of Taiwan's Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) to increase the quota on the number of foreign workers that would be allowed to work in the manufacturing industry. This is in line with the demands of the local business community to lower the investment capital necessary to hire foreign workers. We are wondering what kind of trade off this would necessitate in terms of lowering the standards on the rights and welfare of foreign workers and even on local workers.

The last time the local business community made a proposal to the government was in August 2001. This was during the Economic Development Advisory Conference (EDAC). Both the rights and welfare of migrant and local workers in the manufacturing sector were adversely affected by this. For the former, they had to endure a wage cut to pay for their board and lodging. For the latter, they had to endure flexible working hours.

We hear that the Taiwanese governmentwould establish more export processing zones but workers in such zones would not be covered by the Labor Standards Law. Whatever the plan of the Taiwanese government is, it should not impinge again on the rights and welfare of both migrant and local workers to please the local business community.

At the moment, while foreign workers in the manufacturing industry are covered by the Labor Standards Law, they only have a model contract. This kind of contract does not guarantee any minimum standard protection in terms of wages and working conditions. At the same time, they are also subject to the Civil Law in terms of side agreements imposed on them by their employers and brokers. Side contract can alter any provisions in the model contract which is usually disadvantageous to the migrant workers.

Given this situation and recent developments, it is thus necessary for migrant advocates in and out of Taiwan to call upon the CLA to ensure that foreign workers even in the manufacturing industry should have a standard employment contract.

This should include the following provisions such as minimum wage. It must ensure no deductions in the minimum wage in the guise of perfect attendance, good performance and the like and no deductions for board and lodging. No deductions in the guise of savings, making void all side agreements for all kinds of migrants and ensuring that the passports and ARC's of such workers should not be confiscated by their employers or brokers. These should also include scrapping of all unfair and onerous company and dormitory rules and making sure that migrants be given due process in any conflict with their employers and brokers.

And given the big number of undocumented migrants in Taiwan at present, the CLA should consider legalizing the stay of such workers before importing new ones from the different sending countries. It is also necessary to ensure the protection of the local workers given that their rights are also being attacked at the moment.

Migrants and locals should also unite in opposing these attacks on their rights and welfare. We do not want to see another repeat of EDAC wherein the rights of both parties were trampled upon.