Labor rights activists took to the streets yesterday over a minimum wage hike approved by the Executive Yuan last week that fell far short of labor union expectations.
Protesting in front of the Executive Yuan, labor representatives said that the government approved the minimum wage adjustment plan proposed by the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) without first having labor unions and business owners reach a consensus on the issue.
The Executive Yuan on Sept. 17 approved an increase in the minimum monthly wage from the current NT$17,280 to NT$17,880 and the minimum hourly wage from NT$95 to NT$98. Labor groups had pushed for a 28 percent hike to NT$22,115.
Son Yu-lian (孫友聯), secretary-general of the Taiwan Labor Front, described the approved hike as insignificant, saying the “meager adjustment” was “insulting” to the working class.
The new plan is to take effect at the beginning of next year.
Shih Chao-hsien, (施朝賢), chairman of the Taiwan Confederation of Trade Unions, said the increase of NT$600 per month represented a mere NT$20 more per day, not even enough to buy a boxed lunch, which generally costs NT$50.
“It was a consensus between the government and business owners in a joint plot to exploit the working class,” Shih said.
Lin Chin-yung (林進勇), head of Tatung Co’s union, said the voice of labor had been ignored in the wage adjustment process.
The CLA’s decision to opt for a 3.47 percent hike following the commission’s meeting, he said, was made unilaterally by the CLA, without the approval of any of the labor representatives on the panel.
The activists later proceeded to the Control Yuan and filed an appeal on the issue.
They asked Control Yuan members to investigate whether the lower-than-expected adjustment conformed to the terms of two UN treaties that Taiwan signed into law last year, which recognize “the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.”
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