Migrant workers who are close to the maximum 12 or 14 years that they are allowed to stay in Taiwan can now have their employers apply for a one-year extension to their work permit, the Workforce Development Agency said on Tuesday.
The extensions would be available to migrant workers employed in the manufacturing sector, who are currently limited to a maximum of 12 years in Taiwan, and to private home-based migrant caregivers, who are currently limited to 14 years, the Ministry of Labor agency said in a statement.
The move is designed to reduce the risk of cross-border movement during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to save resources related to quarantine and testing, the agency said, adding that the policy might be adjusted if the pandemic situation changes.
The worker’s consent must be obtained before an employer can apply to the ministry for an extension, the agency said.
Applications can only be made within 30 days before or after an existing employment permit is to expire, it said.
For example, a private home-based migrant caregiver whose employment permit is to expire on July 15 and who is about to reach a total of 14 years working in Taiwan can have their permit extended to July 15 next year, it said.
There are about 35,320 migrant workers who are eligible for an extension, agency data showed.
There were 666,371 migrant workers in Taiwan as of the end of April, with 446,485 employed in the manufacturing sector and 219,886 in the social welfare sector, ministry statistics showed.
Rights groups have criticized Taiwan’s rules regulating the stay of migrant workers.
The Migrant Empowerment Network in Taiwan, a coalition of civil groups promoting migrant workers’ rights, said that the different rules for how long white-collar and blue-collar foreign workers are allowed to stay in Taiwan are “discriminatory” and “anti-equality.”
There are no caps on how long white-collar foreign workers can remain in Taiwan, but blue-collar foreign workers are only allowed to work in Taiwan for a maximum of 12 to 14 years, the coalition said in a statement on May 8.
Migrant workers are treated as “merely spare and disposable guest workers for employers,” it said.
On April 30, the ministry launched a pathway to permanent residency for migrant workers, with the first step to be reclassified as a “mid-level skilled worker” if they have been employed in a designated field for at least six years and meet certain conditions, such as minimum-wage requirements.
However, the income qualification has drawn criticism, especially from migrant care providers working in private homes, who say their average monthly salary is about NT$17,000 when they need a minimum monthly pay of NT$24,000.
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
A Vietnamese migrant worker on Thursday won the NT$12 million (US$383,590) jackpot on a scratch-off lottery ticket she bought from a lottery shop in Changhua County’s Puyan Township (埔鹽), Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The lottery winner, who is in her 30s and married, said she would continue to work in Taiwan and send her winnings to her family in Vietnam to improve their life. More Taiwanese and migrant workers have flocked to the lottery shop on Sec 2 of Jhangshuei Road (彰水路) to share in the luck. The shop owner, surnamed Chen (陳), said that his shop has been open for just
TAKE BREAKS: A woman developed cystitis by refusing to get up to use the bathroom while playing mahjong for fear of disturbing her winning streak, a doctor said People should stand up and move around often while traveling or playing mahjong during the Lunar New Year holiday, as prolonged sitting can lead to cystitis or hemorrhoids, doctors said. Yuan’s General Hospital urologist Lee Tsung-hsi (李宗熹) said that he treated a 63-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙) who had been sitting motionless and holding off going to the bathroom, increasing her risk of bladder infection. Chao would drink beverages and not urinate for several hours while playing mahjong with friends and family, especially when she was on a winning streak, afraid that using the bathroom would ruin her luck, he said. She had
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry
RSS