TAIPEI (TVBS News) — The Garden of Hope Foundation (勵馨基金會) on Thursday (Nov. 21) highlighted a concerning gap in foreign workers' awareness of Taiwan's labor laws, potentially jeopardizing their rights. The foundation's report revealed that nearly half of these workers lack knowledge of local labor regulations, with about 30% feeling pressured into overtime and another 30% experiencing discrimination based on nationality and language.
In publicly listed companies, over 20% of foreign employees reported the absence of announced sexual harassment prevention measures, and around 10% noted a lack of public grievance channels. By the end of October, the National Immigration Agency (移民署) reported nearly 90,000 missing migrant workers, a statistic the foundation warns could tarnish Taiwan's human rights image.
Nearly 70% of foreign workers indicated their companies did not provide occupational safety training, and 60% expressed a desire for relaxed permanent residency qualifications and unemployment benefits. The foundation recommends the government establish a bilingual website to provide application information and labor rights regulations for foreign workers and install multilingual signage in workplaces.
Shih I-hsiang (施逸翔), a senior researcher at the Taiwan Association for Human Rights (台灣人權促進會), urged the government to safeguard migrant workers' fundamental human rights, especially evacuating fishery workers to safe locations during typhoons.
Kaili Lee (李凱莉) from The Garden of Hope Foundation noted Taiwan's rapidly aging population, projecting nearly 4 million retirements within nine years, emphasizing the importance of a sustainable workforce and talent management as Taiwan approaches a super-aged society next year.