Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Deputy Chairman Kao Koong-lian (高孔廉) yesterday said the foundation would ask China to consider giving Taiwanese businesses tax breaks to help them deal with financial difficulties resulting from the global economic downturn.
Kao said he hoped the Chinese government would consider alleviating the burden on Taiwanese investors by cutting taxes imposed on them.
“The entire global economy is in recession,” he said.
“There are different effects on each and every nation, but, mainland China is not as seriously affected as other nations,” he said.
HIGHER COSTS
Kao said that while he believed Taiwanese businesses should jump at the opportunity to invest in China, it was also true that investors there were facing difficulties.
“The implementation of the Labor Contract Law in mainland China has greatly increased the operational costs of Taiwan businesses in mainland China,” Kao said, referring to a law that raised the cost of labor by requiring employers to give their employees contracts and insurance.
The Labor Contract Law came into effect on Jan. 1 and stipulates that job contracts must be put in writing within one month of hiring an employee.
Employers must fully inform workers of the nature of the job, their working conditions and compensation. The law also limits employers from overrelying on temporary workers to keep personnel costs low.
Kao said that China’s land use law in cities and towns also placed a heavy burden on Taiwanese businesses and that the SEF hoped that Chinese government would consider allowing Taiwanese businesses to defer the payment of this tax.
“The SEF cares about the operations of Taiwanese businesses in mainland China,” Kao said. “We are using all possible means to understand the situation of Taiwanese businesses who operate businesses in mainland China.”
VISITING CHINA
Kao said he would visit Taiwanese businesspeople in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on Saturday and would attend an annual celebration of the city’s Taiwanese business association.
SEF Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) will also visit Taiwanese business leaders in Guangdong and Jiangsu provinces from Jan. 7 to Jan. 11, Kao said.
“Both Chairman Chiang Pin-kung and I will use our opportunities to visit Taiwanese businessmen to find out their needs and help them in any way we can,” he said.
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
EVA Airways, one of the leading international carriers in Taiwan, yesterday said that it was investigating reports that a cabin crew manager had ignored the condition of a sick flight attendant, who died on Saturday. The airline made the statement in response to a post circulating on social media that said that the flight attendant on an outbound flight was feeling sick and notified the cabin crew manager. Although the flight attendant grew increasingly ill on the return flight, the manager did not contact Medlink — a system that connects the aircraft to doctors on the ground for treatment advice during medical
The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday vowed to protest at the EVA Air Marathon on Sunday next week should EVA Airway Corp’s management continue to ignore the union’s petition to change rules on employees’ leave of absence system, after a flight attendant reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight while ill. The case has generated public discussion over whether taking personal or sick leave should affect a worker’s performance review. Several union members yesterday protested at the Legislative Yuan, holding white flowers and placards, while shouting: “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime.” “The union is scheduled to meet with
‘UNITED FRONT’ RHETORIC: China’s TAO also plans to hold weekly, instead of biweekly, news conferences because it wants to control the cross-strait discourse, an expert said China’s plan to expand its single-entry visa-on-arrival service to Taiwanese would be of limited interest to Taiwanese and is a feeble attempt by Chinese administrators to demonstrate that they are doing something, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said the program aims to facilitate travel to China for Taiwanese compatriots, regardless of whether they are arriving via direct flights or are entering mainland China through Hong Kong, Macau or other countries, and they would be able to apply for a single-entry visa-on-arrival at all eligible entry points in China. The policy aims
RSS