The number of furloughed workers on formal unpaid leave programs in Taiwan rose over the past week, boosted by an increase in the manufacturing sector, the Ministry of Labor said yesterday.
The number of workers placed on furlough programs rose to 15,927 nationwide as of yesterday, up 981 from 14,946 on Tuesday last week, ministry data showed.
The manufacturing sector was the main contributor to the increase in the number of furloughed workers, Labor Conditions and Equal Employment Division deputy head Wang Chin-jung (王金蓉) said.
The number of furloughed workers in the manufacturing sector rose 458 to 7,389, the biggest hike among business sectors, Wang said.
The number of employers in the manufacturing sector implementing unpaid leave programs also rose by 78 to 2,133 over the past week.
The number of furloughed workers in the metal and mechanical industries rose by 387 to 3,907, Wang said.
A textile machinery maker has furloughed 60 to 300 employees at a time since September last year, before deciding to give employees an extra one to two days of unpaid leave this month, because its customers scaled back orders, Wang said.
Wang said that the number of furloughed workers in the manufacturing sector is closely related to customer orders, which have been affected by the international political and economic situation, such as the war in Ukraine.
Domestic demand-oriented sectors have been stable, including the support services sector, which primarily consists of travel agencies, and wholesale and retail businesses, Wang added.
Those industries only saw about 100 workers in small firms placed on unpaid leave over the past week, Wang said.
In the support services sector, the number of workers on unpaid leave increased to 5,329, from 5,225 a week earlier, and the number of employers implementing furlough programs rose from 1,045 to 1,061.
The number of furloughed workers in the retail and wholesale sector rose to 1,301, up 149 from a week earlier, and the number in the lodging, and food and beverage industry rose from 592 to 597.
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