New taipei: The union at TaiDoc Technology Corp. staged a protest in New Taipei as part of their ongoing efforts to urge authorities to freeze the company's migrant-worker hiring quota. The city's labor department has stated that TaiDoc is currently ineligible to apply for this quota due to an ongoing dispute with the union.
According to Focus Taiwan, the protest, held outside the New Taipei City Government in Banqiao District, marked the fifth such demonstration by the TaiDoc Technology Labor Union (TTLU) in recent months. Previous protests took place outside the Ministry of Labor (MOL) in Taipei, during which the union threatened strike action and accused the company of union-busting.
Lennon Wang, director of the NGO Serve the People Association's Department of Policies on Migrant Workers, addressed the rally, urging the New Taipei City government not to issue TaiDoc any certificates of no labor law violations. Such certificates are necessary for Taiwanese companies to recruit migrant workers. Wang, also a union leader, called on MOL to freeze TaiDoc's migrant worker quota to ensure compliance with legal standards and to encourage negotiations with the union.
After receiving a petition from the union, Hsiao Hui-min, an official from New Taipei's Labor Affairs Department, stated that the city government would not issue TaiDoc a "certificate of no labor law violations" if the company sought to hire additional migrant workers. This decision is based on regulations that require the absence of strikes or management-labor disputes at designated work locations for incoming foreign workers.
Hsiao highlighted that, following a motion by TTLU to authorize strike action, a significant labor dispute exists between TaiDoc and its employees. This prevents the issuance of the certificate under current regulations. She added that the union-busting allegations are being adjudicated as an "unfair labor practice" case by MOL, and the dismissal of union officials raises suspicions of illegality.
The MOL responded to inquiries by stating that it would freeze TaiDoc's migrant-worker quota during the labor dispute and subject future applications to increased scrutiny. Meanwhile, TaiDoc, while not directly addressing the union's call for a hiring freeze, rejected demands for a government-imposed export ban, citing potential negative impacts on its financial stability and employee livelihoods.