Most of the migrant workers in Taiwan find themselves striving for a humble living as the lower class. To rectify this situation, Taiwan ONE-FORTY Migrant Educational and Cultural Association was founded to assist Southeast Asian migrant workers in Taiwan, hoping to break down the barrier between them and local residents and to promote understanding and tolerance towards them, with the ultimate objective to bring harmony in this sector of industry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

　　These migrant workers usually work for house nursing jobs, looking after elderly people unable to take care of themselves. These jobs require long and irregular hours of work. When we tried to find out what kind of protection they can receive from related labor laws in Taiwan, we were much disheartened to realize that the absence of related labor law and government measures to protect their rights had rendered them powerless victims of working overtime. We believe that the economic prosperity of Taiwan should not be based on the exploitation of foreign laborers. Regardless of his or her nationality and ethnicity, every laboror should receive equal protection of labor law. According to Article 53 of the Employment Service Act, employed foreign workers can’t require to transfer to a new employer, and neither can they freely choose their employer. That means, if the employer isn’t satisfied with the house nursing worker, he or she can demand the human resources agency to switch another; yet if employed foreign workers encounter a terrible employer, there is nowhere for them to voice their complaints. When they were abused at work or didn’t receive their salaries, they had no choice but to become fugitive workers, as they had no money to pay for the agency fee again. This is a serious problem without any solution to it yet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Migrant workers fighting for their own rights

Migrant workers protesting for freedom