September 1, 2001

Solidarity Against Exploitation

ISSUED BY

CATHOLIC MIGRANT ADVOCATES, TAIWAN

In spite of the strong opposition from migrant workers, local unions and local Catholic NGO's, the Taiwan Council of Labor Affairs (CLA), starting from September 1, 2001, has decided to include food and accommodation cost in the minimum wage of both factory and construction migrant workers (Since Oct. 1998, the minimum wage had been set at 15,840 NT$ - US$ 466). Initially this fee costs 2,500 NT$ per month, but will be increased till it reaches 5,000 NT$ (31.7% of the minimum wage). We, the Catholic migrant advocates in Taiwan, stand strongly against this new CLA regulation, and we will continue our advocacy on both local and international levels, to strengthen our solidarity against this capitalistic domination.

We doubt that this new regulation will ultimately benefit the Taiwan economy. As a matter of fact, by making the foreign labor force cheaper, the unemployment rate for local workers will simply be further exacerbated. This only renders worse suffering to more local families.

Here, we do not attempt to argue against the legality of the new regulation that has laid dormant in the Labor Standards Law since its promulgation in 1984. However, since the migrant workers are now paying for their food and accommodation, we request the CLA to provide them with the freedom of choice on where they will live and what they will eat.

We also question the justification given by the government that Taiwan's salary for migrant workers is much higher than that which is paid in Hong Kong. In fact, domestic workers in Hong Kong receive a higher salary than migrant workers in Taiwan. Moreover, we insist that the CLA offers the migrant workers better protection under the law and the same social welfare enjoyed by migrant workers in Hong Kong and Singapore.

We request the CLA to cooperate with the labor sending countries, taking concrete steps to curb the collection of high placement fees and illegal deductions by the broker agencies. We ask for more severe penalties for employers who either violate the provisions stipulated in both the Labor Standards Law and the migrant workers' contract or take unfair advantage of the migrant workers in any form.

We deplore the three labor-sending countries, namely Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand, for their weak opposition to this proposal. Workers from these countries should not be considered as cheap commodities meant to be "sold out" at the lowest bid, but should be respected as citizens that contribute to the economy of their mother countries with their own sweat and sacrifices. Both the human and labor rights of these workers must thus be duly protected.

Up until now, Taiwan is not one of the signatories of the two main International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions on migration {Migration for Employment Convention (Revised), 1949, (no. 97) and Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1975, (no. 143)}. We hope that Taiwan will commence implementing some of the provisions of both Conventions, so that the world can see that migrant rights are put on the top priority by the Taiwan government.

We appeal once again to both migrant and local workers alike to put aside the differences, joining hand in hand, united in solidarity in our common battle against exploitation and abuses in the world of labor.

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