Continue the Campaign on the Minimum Wage Hike
Taiwan
1 July 2007

July 1, 2007 is a day of infamy for the Council of Labor Affairs. The minimum wage would increase but would exclude migrant household service workers (HSW¡¦s) and increase the board and lodging on other job categories.

We already have some initial reports on its effect on factory workers in Neili, Taoyuan and Nantzu, Kaohsiung. In both factories food is not charged to the workers, as they are the ones who provide this to themselves. However, the lodging fee increased from NT$500 to NT$1440 in Olitec while in ASE the fee rose from NT$700 ¡V NT$1200. In addition to this, the night differential in the latter is now being incorporated into the minimum wage, instead of being paid as an additional benefit to the workers.

In Olitec there are ten workers per room. And in both factories it is questionable if the cost of such dormitories are that high or there is suddenly a big increase in the rentals of their housing.

In Changhua county, some migrant workers are being charged NT$2100 a month for lodging even if they can rent a three room apartment for NT$5,000 a month. Clearly this is a device by the CLA to pass on the increase of the wage to the migrant workers themselves and for the employers to earn additional income on the latter. 

The migrant workers have been subsidizing their employers since 2002 for the board and lodging fees. This was provided free of charge for ten years before that and should continue as migrant workers do not have their own residences in Taiwan and receive only the minimum wage.

These foreign workers also subsidize their employers for their management expenses which is euphemistically called brokers service fees; for their ARC's; medical examinations and even for their air fare to and from Taiwan.

Essentially, what we have today is a wage cut and not a wage increase. The actual minimum wage of Filipino factory workers for a 6-year period is only NT$8837 a month for 6 years of work. An Indonesian on the other hand would only get NT$6,195 a month.

Filipino HSW's on the other hand have a monthly wage of NT$12,241 and Indonesians only receive NT$9,992 a month. Their work is harder though as they are on 24 hour call and majority have limited or no days off. Most, especially the caretakers also do other chores not stipulated in their employment contracts. 

These legalized extortions make a mockery of the minimum wage. These should be stopped!

And the only way to do this is through petitions, mass actions, and even strikes organized by the foreign workers themselves. The CLA should not belittle the migrant workers. The Kaoshiung MRT incident and the 5 strikes in Formosa Plastics Corporation (FPC) in less than a year can and will happen again. If not now, we¡¦re very sure in the not too distant future.

Asia Pacific Mission for Migrants (APMM)
Migrante International - Taiwan Chapter
Gabriela Women¡¦s Party - Taiwan Chapter