Officials yesterday rejected negative perceptions about Indian migrant workers that arose after the two countries on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding on the issue.
Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) called on the public not to stigmatize Indian workers, saying that migrant labor is necessary because local workers are not inclined to do the so-called “3K” — difficult, dirty or dangerous — jobs, including those in long-term care and construction.
If Taiwanese did apply for such positions, they would be prioritized, Chen said.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Lin Kuo-cheng (林國成) earlier yesterday said Taiwanese are worried about their jobs being taken.
Separately, Workforce Development Agency Director-General Tsai Meng-liang (蔡孟良) said that negative stereotypes of migrant workers should be rejected, adding that there are many talented Indian workers around the world.
Taiwanese tend to wrongly assume that migrant workers are a source of social issues, but the crime rate among migrant workers in Taiwan is less than half of that among Taiwanese, Tsai said.
There are about 18 million people from India working around the world, including about 8.5 million in the Middle East alone, 210,000 in Italy and 50,000 in Germany, he said.
Many countries have talked with India about bringing workers to their countries, including Japan and South Korea, Tsai said.
Israel is also considering expanding the number it admits amid a war-induced shortage, he said.
Labor shortages are a global problem and Taiwan’s industries could be at risk if action is not taken, he said.
Cabinet spokesman Lin Tze-luen (林子倫) said in a statement that because labor shortages are a problem in many industries, the government is looking to work with countries that have people willing to move to Taiwan.
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
Snow fell in the mountainous areas of northern, central and eastern Taiwan in the early hours of yesterday, as cold air currents moved south. In the northern municipality of Taoyuan, snow started falling at about 6am in Fusing District (復興), district head Su Tso-hsi (蘇佐璽) said. By 10am, Lalashan National Forest Recreation Area, as well as Hualing (華陵), Sanguang (三光) and Gaoyi (高義) boroughs had seen snowfall, Su said. In central Taiwan, Shei-Pa National Park in Miaoli County and Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Nantou County saw snowfall of 5cm and 6cm respectively, by 10am, staff at the parks said. It began snowing
HOLIDAY EXERCISE: National forest recreation areas from north to south offer travelers a wide choice of sights to connect with nature and enjoy its benefits Hiking is a good way to improve one’s health, the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency said, as it released a list of national forest recreation areas that travelers can visit during the Lunar New Year holiday. Taking a green shower of phytoncides in the woods could boost one’s immunity system and metabolism, agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) cited a Japanese study as saying. For people visiting northern Taiwan, Lin recommended the Dongyanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Taoyuan’s Fusing District (復興). Once an important plantation in the north, Dongyanshan (東眼山) has a number of historic monuments, he said. The area is broadly covered by
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
RSS