Taiwan should seek to tackle the dual challenges of low birthrates and talent shortages by adopting innovative policies and practical actions to foster a more family-friendly workplace environment, with help from the private sector, the European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) said yesterday.
Following last week’s projections by the National Development Council that Taiwan’s population would continue to decline, the ECCT pressed the issue during an annual summit organized by its Family Friendly Alliance (FFA).
Taiwan is approaching a so-called “super-aged society” in which low birthrates and talent shortages would pose challenges for national development, the chamber said.
Photo: Lu Hsien-hsiu, Taipei Times
The causes of low birthrates are complex, encompassing generational differences, socio-economic development and changes in cultural values, said Hideko Ikeda, cochair of the FFA and general manager of Merck Healthcare Taiwan.
Taiwan’s government has made great efforts, but it is not enough to rely on the public sector or individuals to solve the problem, she said.
Rather, collaboration among businesses and different parts of society is urgently needed to come up with solutions, she said.
“We can find effective solutions tailored to local conditions by drawing on evidence-based international experiences, research and policies,” she said.
Innovative policies and practical actions can foster a more family-friendly workplace environment, enhance birthrates, attract talent, and promote sustainable development for companies and Taiwan as a whole, she said.
Emily Tiemann, a manager at Economist Impact, a business intelligence body based in New York City, said that countries can address low birthrates and talent shortages through four main policy areas: childcare services, financial incentives, workplace policies and assisted reproduction.
Amy Hsin (辛文麗), head of Adecco Taiwan’s staffing and outsourcing division, said that companies should build a workplace environment that embraces diversity, inclusion and talent sustainability through digital transformation, cross-generational communication and multicultural development.
Saxon Chen (陳俊嘉), CEO of H2U Corp and cochair of the FFA, encouraged companies to strengthen care for employee health, enhance welfare systems and implement more family-friendly policies to create a happy and healthy workplace environment that is sustainable.
Emily Hsia (夏國安) of Hon Hai Technology Group (鴻海科技) shared the company’s efforts to promote employees’ welfare and support family-friendly policies, highlighting a monthly childcare subsidy of NT$15,000 (US$467) that has benefited more than 1,500 children and steeply increased the postpartum job retention rate for women from 69 percent to 89.5 percent in recent years.
Low fertility rates pose a challenge not only to the nation, but also to the industrial sector, because it would weigh on its competitiveness, the company said.
ECCT CEO Freddie Hoglund said Europe has useful experiences to share, as it has committed to developing family-friendly policies for many years.
“We know what works and what does not. It is our hope that the ECCT can act as the bridge between Taiwan’s government and businesses to share our practices with the society,” he said.
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