(1) Fighting For Their Own Rights

 

　　Due to the needs of the industrial population, Taiwan ’s demand for foreign workers is increasing. In order to alleviate the shortage of labor and slow down the migration of small and medium-sized manufacturers, 718,186 people have migrated from Southeast Asia to Taiwan.

 

　　In response to Taiwan's aging society, most of the migrant workers move to Taiwan to provide family care manpower to maintain the normal operation of family life. Their main tasks are house cleaning, food cooking, caring for family members, or other housework. Home caregivers are engaged in the daily care of patients and people with disabilities in the family.

 

 　　In 1990, the United Nations General Assembly passed the law, The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, to prevent social discrimination and pursuit equal treatment. However, since Taiwan withdrew from the United Nations in 1971, it no longer has the right to discuss the convention and obey its obligations. Therefore, there are many benefits that can be enjoyed by migrants in other countries and cannot be effectively implemented in Taiwan. For example, although the convention mentions the prohibition of discrimination, Article 5 of the Taiwan Employment Service Law that designed to ensure equal employment opportunities for "nationals" does not take migrant workers into account. Migrant workers are often treated unequally in the workplace because of nationality or economic status. Even though the Convention grants the right to relocate with family members within a certain period of time, but in accordance with Article 23 of Taiwan's Immigration and Immigration Law, legal foreigners’ spouse and their minor children who have stayed for more than 60 days and are authorized to apply for residence, however, according to Article 46, paragraph 1, paragraphs 8 to 10 of the Employment Services Act, migrants are not allowed to apply for residence. Since Taiwan lacks the constraints of the UN Convention in terms of regulations, the lives of migrant workers in Taiwan have been affected in a negative way. Migrants’ Park was born for this: Although there is no way to have a direct influence like the United Nations, the organization still hopes that their articles and reports will help Taiwanese to understand the immigration of migrant workers and indirectly speed up the revision of regulations in Taiwan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

　　Several individuals and groups had been fighting for migrant worker’s rights in the society. They input their effort on a providing better environment, safety, rationalization of salary and working hours, and educating migrant workers to adapt to society. In the past ten years, the population of migrant workers in Taiwan had incline due to the necessity of the production field. However, the management and law regulation are relatively incomplete. Migrant workers suffer from prolonged working hours, the exploxit of employers or intermediaries, and unequal treatment etc, resulting in escape from their current job and wander in the society. And therefore, had caused several unexpected social issues. For instance, can we empathize and use different aspects to treat these legal migrant workers that had escaped from their job? Were they really forced to despir? Or were there other options? Does society provide reasonable treatment and care? These are questions worthy of profound consideration by each individual.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(2) Human Rights Equality Concept

 

　　“Migrant workers”, are workers that pursue money and benefits through migration. It's an inevitable migrating population under the globalization of economy, and this particular identity did not include any race, nationality, gender, or belief. Yet, Taiwanese consider “migrant workers” as people from south east asia and do manual labor, also known as “blue-collar worker”. For a long time, society held a misunderstanding on the foreign migrant workers. Mainly because the migrant workers are generally impoverished, and have low educational levels. Or the jobs they take are considered low status in the society, and Taiwanes put the sense of “class” on them. In fact, according to the “declaration of human rights” of the United Nations, pointed out that humans are born free and equal to their dignity and rights regardless of condition. This website takes actual cases and social phenomenon, to investigate the unequal treatment of migrant workers in Taiwan and to explain that society should strive to implement human rights equality. People should not take identity, races, and occupation as standard to treat migrant workers. Instead, we should use an aspect of harmonious and rationality to treat these migrant workers who contributed their youth and power to Taiwan. And actively accepting and assisting migrant workers to integrate into society.

 

 

 

TOP

 

Migrant workers in Taipei train station

Website of the Moving Man