The Ministry of Labor is to study how opening the hospitality industry to foreign workers could disproportionately affect vocational opportunities for middle-aged women and indigenous people, Minister of Labor Hsu Ming-chun (許明春) said on Wednesday.
Hsu made the comment when presenting a report at the Legislative Yuan’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee meeting.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lai Hui-yuan (賴惠員) said that a complaint in the hotel industry about a shortage of workers was due to too few applicants.
Hsu said that ministry data showed there were 1,148 vacant positions and 5,343 applicants, with only 400 people hired.
Many employers turned down the applicants, saying their health and fitness did not meet requirements, but had yet to specify what had not met their expectations, she said.
Relaxing restrictions on foreign workers in the hotel industry could severely affect vocational opportunities for women looking for secondary employment, DPP Legislator Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said.
Taiwan’s environment is already unfriendly toward such people, Hung said.
Due to the locations of many hostels and hotels, a high percentage of employed staff are indigenous, he said, adding that allowing hotels to hire foreign workers would also affect the vocational opportunities of indigenous people.
The hotel industry offers high domestic employment, with more than 60 percent of employees being Taiwanese women, of whom 36 percent are middle-aged to elderly, Hsu said.
The ministry hopes to prioritize the employment of Taiwanese and urged the industry to be more accommodating of women seeking secondary employment, he said.
Hsu said that the ministry would launch an assessment regarding the policy’s impact on the groups and make a report within two months.
Foreign tourists who purchase a seven-day Taiwan Pass are to get a second one free of charge as part of a government bid to boost tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. A pair of Taiwan Passes is priced at NT$5,000 (US$156.44), an agency staff member said, adding that the passes can be used separately. The pass can be used in many of Taiwan’s major cities and to travel to several tourist resorts. It expires seven days after it is first used. The pass is a three-in-one package covering the high-speed rail system, mass rapid transport (MRT) services and the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle services,
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