TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Groups representing foreign domestic workers presented a list of demands to the Ministry of Labor (MOL) at a public demonstration in Taipei on Sunday (Nov. 24).
The main demand from the labor groups is to raise monthly wages from NT$20,000 (US$614) to NT$28,590 (US$877), the minimum salary Taiwanese citizens will receive beginning next year. Other demands included days off for national holidays, inclusion in the long-term care plan, and more protection regarding privacy and basic human rights, per CNA.
The MOL said it will take into account the request of labor groups to raise salaries. However, it said this request must be weighed against the financial burden employers bear.
Liang Li-fang (梁莉芳), director of the Awakening Foundation, said that when Taiwan began accepting foreign domestic care workers in 1992, salaries had only been raised twice. According to Liang, there are more than 220,000 migrant domestic workers in Taiwan.
Liang said the low wages paid to domestic care workers, who are mostly female, indicate Taiwanese society has devalued women’s labor. Liang said wage inequality and gender discrimination can no longer be tolerated.
Other groups representing foreign domestic workers, such as Serikat Buruh Industri Perawatan Taiwan (SBIPT), delivered a signed petition to the MOL. It demanded removing the maximum number of years a foreign domestic worker can stay in Taiwan and simplifying the process of changing employers.
Yu Hsiao-Chiu (于曉秋), MOL Workforce Development Agency Section Chief, accepted the petition from labor groups and said the government would consider the request to raise wages. Yu said the government currently provides a monthly salary subsidy of NT$3,000 (US$92) for low- and middle-income households that employ foreign domestic caregivers.
Yu said 77,079 people have applied for wage subsidies. Employers who fail to pay such wages will be fined between NT$60,000 and NT$300,000 (US$1,840 and 92,007).
Foreign domestic workers are protected by the Employment Service Act and included in the Occupational Disaster Insurance Law, covering occupational injuries, medical treatment, illness, and other benefits. Yu called upon employers to ensure safety and privacy in the accommodations given to domestic migrant workers following relevant regulations, including provisions of the Sexual Assault Crime Prevention Act and the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act.
