Latest

2020/09/11 | Voice of America

Apple Announces ‘Human Rights Policy’ Following Criticism

The tech giant’s policy prohibits harassment and abuse and specifies a 60-hour maximum workweek, as well as at least one day off per week.

2020/09/09 | Deutsche Welle

US Set To Block Imports From China Over Forced Labor

Washington has cited forced labor in western Xinjiang autonomous region as grounds to ban Chinese cotton and tomatoes. The measures would hit a wide array of industries and could have far-reaching consequences for U.S. retailers.

2020/01/07 | Nicole Lee

TPP: Lai Hsiang-ling, Taipei's Labor Director, Hopes to Push for Progressive Bills

The News Lens interviewed Lai Hsiang-ling (賴香伶), the top party list candidate for Taiwan People's Party. She's a longtime labor rights activist since the 1990s and she has been heading Taipei's Department of Labor since 2014. What does she hope to achieve in the legislature if she's elected?

2018/10/24 | New Bloom

INTERVIEW: Taiwan Labor Film Festival Screens Stories of Struggle and Solidarity

A chat with Catta Chou, curator of the 2018 Taiwan International Labor Film Festival – which is now underway in Taipei.

2018/10/19 | 1095 Culture Studio

New Board Game Lets Children Unmask Taiwan's Migrant Worker Woes

A new board game allows students to experience the difficult life choices and hardships of Taiwan’s migrant workers.

2018/06/01 | TNL Staff

Taiwan's Latest Emergency Services Salary Switcharoo

Junior cops are getting promised a raise of a whopping NT$1,370 per month, but two-thirds won't see it. Firefighters are also getting hosed.

2018/04/27 | Nick Aspinwall

Taiwan Labor Ministry's Brokerage Evaluation Sparks Concern

The labor agency's yearly assessment of migrant worker broker firms is underway, but a recent protest has renewed sentiments that the brokerage system is unethical by design.

2017/08/21 | Roy Ngerng

Taiwan’s ‘Grim Truth’: Vicious Low Wage, Low Productivity Cycle Crippling Workers and Companies

As Taiwanese businesses are unwilling to increase wages for the want to hold onto their profits, they are also complicit in causing themselves to lose demand, and therefore their business sustainability. The government needs to act.

2017/05/21 | Siddharth Chakravarty

Murky Waters: Stop Blaming China for the State of the World’s Fishing Stocks

China might be the biggest player in global fishing, but Western countries are also in deep water when it comes to industry rights abuses and environmental damage, Siddharth Chakravarty writes.

2017/03/02 | Michael Beltran

Who Started the Manila Fires? Black Out on Labor Rights (Part Two)

At the moment there have been no more statements. No sound from the employees or survivors. Not a peep on the workers unaccounted for. The latest from HTI is that the company is looking to hire more workers.

2016/09/01 | ZiQing Low

Taiwan Forms National Media Union

The creation of a media industry union on a national level aims to change the often-unhealthy working environment for reporters across the nation.

2016/08/09 | Austin Chad Willhoft

Abuse of Migrant Workers in Taiwan Regular: NGO

‘We see many cases of sexual abuse, harassment or inappropriate contact. Most migrant workers don’t ask for help because if they talk to their broker, they will be threatened to be sent back to their home country.’

2016/08/04 | Hsu Chia-yu

Taiwan Flight Attendants Delisted From Union For Not Striking

Among the flight attendants who were taken off the union list are those who were working during President Tsai Ing-wen's first state visit.

2016/07/27 | Chang Shin-wei

Support for Tsai Drops by 14% in Two Months

Labor rights issues, the South China Sea ruling, and the accidental launch of a missile are believed to have contributed to the wavering trust in the Tsai administration.

2016/05/30 | Edward White

Deal with Crooked Brokers and Soft Judges to Fix Human Trafficking

Taiwan’s anti-human trafficking system is failing to stem the flow of workers from Southeast Asia into exploitative working environments in Taiwan. An NGO leader who has helped thousands of victims is calling for change.

2016/03/25 | TNL 編輯

Taiwan Legislator Calls For Ban On After-Hour Messages

In the latest session of the Legislative Yuan, labor rights of being free from employers’ calls after working hours were promoted; however, the Minister of Labor still says they have little control over the operation of the companies, including protecting labor rights after hours.

2016/03/22 | TNL 編輯

Taipei Mayor Proposes Making Up For Typhoon Day-Offs

The Department of Labor stated that Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je's proposal of making up cancelled work and school days due to typhoons on weekends conflicts with labor rights. However, many governmental departments are currently working on forming this new policy.