Taiwan hikes workers’ minimum pay – DOLE

MANILA, Philippines - Taiwan’s legislative authority, the Executive Yuan, has raised the monthly minimum wage of workers there from NT$18,780 (P25,813.30) to NT$19,047 (P26,180.29), Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said yesterday.

“This is good news, not only for the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) deployed in Taiwan, but for all the workers in the country,” Baldoz said.

“We know that the government of Taiwan ensures that the welfare of its workers is well taken care of,” she said.

The new salary rate was recommended by the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) of the Executive Yuan.

In his report to Baldoz, Labor Attache to Taipei Rey Conferido said that last year’s recommendation of the CLA to adjust the minimum wage was rejected by the Executive Yuan due to the difficult economic situation of the country.

The Executive Yuan, however, said that the proposed adjustment would be approved if the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grows over three percent for at least two consecutive quarters; if the unemployment rate goes lower than four percent for at least two consecutive months; or if the Council for Economic Planning and Development will support the proposed adjustment based on its evaluation of the economy within the period.

The Executive Yuan also requested the CLA to deliberate on the process of minimum wage adjustment and consider the practicability of adopting multi-minimum wages.

With Taiwan’s GDP achieving a growth rate of 3.42 percent during the fourth quarter of 2012, and this year’s first quarter GDP growth rate seen to be above three percent, complemented by the reported smooth development of the country’s finance, production management, and labor force market situation during the period, the Executive Yuan approved the new minimum wage.

“The adjustment will cover monthly-paid workers, to which our OFW-factory workers and those covered by the Labor Standards Act, belong,” Conferido said.

Conferido added that the minimum wage of household-based caretakers remain at NT$15,480 (P21,268.90).

Around 1.7 million workers stand to benefit from the new minimum wage, and it is expected that the adjustment will bring overall salary growth.

Preliminary data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration showed that in 2012, there were 41,461 OFWs in Taiwan.