Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) yesterday said that the Cabinet’s proposed amendment to the Labor Standards Act (勞動基本法) would undergo “subtle adjustments” next week.
Ker made the announcement following a meeting of the DPP caucus during which Minister of Labor Lin Mei-chu (林美珠) briefed DPP lawmakers on the adjustments.
The adjustments were proposed after Premier William Lai (賴清德) met with DPP lawmakers twice this week to hear their opinions and considered the public’s attitude toward the amendment, he said, adding that the adjustments will focus on several “regulatory measures” and would “tighten the rules” in the draft amendment.
Photo: CNA
Draft regulations that would allow employers to legally make employees work up to 12 days in a row before granting them two days off and that would reduce the minimum rest time between shifts from 11 to 8 hours will not be implemented at employers’ discretion, but after only local authorities meet with sector associations and determine which sectors have “special needs” that warrant such work schedules, Ker said.
Local authorities are to publish a list specifying sectors that qualify, which will then be double-checked by the labor ministry, Ker said.
That means requests to implement more flexible labor rules will not be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, but by sector, he said, adding that granting workers one day off every seven days and at least 11 hours of rest between shifts would remain the norm.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Local governments are to announce which sectors are eligible for flexible schedules and individual employers in those sectors will then be allowed to start negotiations with unions or employeeswhose consent they first need to obtain, Ker said.
Employers are to specify under what circumstances and for how long they plan to implement flexible schedules, which are to be regularly reviewed by authorities and will be subject to change, he said.
Special circumstances under which the schedules could apply would include peak seasons, performance tours, large events and companies that are under pressure to fulfill orders within a limited time frame, Ker quoted Lin as saying.
One of the regulatory measures stipulates that, should any employers arbitrarily implement flexible schedules, employees could file complaints with local authorities, Ker said.
Asked if the caucus would clear the draft amendment through committee reviews next week, Ker said: “That is our hope.”
Separately yesterday, Lai said that the underlying principles of the draft amendment would remain unchanged, but called for the legal language to be drafted more precisely so that the public may understand the amendment better.
The draft amendment has gone through sufficient discussion and gained universal support among DPP members, he said, adding that it would grant employers and employees alike more flexibility, provided that labor rights are protected.
The premier on Thursday night on a political talk show rejected criticism that the amendment would “set labor rights back 100 years,” saying that the majority of workers will still have 12 hours of rest each day.
Total daily working hours will be capped at 12, he said, adding that it is “impossible” for a person to work for 16 hours and only rest for eight hours a day.
“In the worst-case scenario, workers will have at least 12 hours of rest,” Lai said, while conceding that some professions, such as nursing, might require special rules.
The biggest problem with the current “one fixed day off, one flexible rest day” policy is that it lacks flexibility, forcing 19 percent of workers to forgo opportunities to earn overtime pay and exposing them to increased competition from part-time workers and automated production lines, Lai said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
RSS