Workers with Labor Insurance who suffer an occupational accident should seek medical attention with a Labor Insurance Occupational Injury/Illness Outpatient Clinic Form or Hospitalization Application Form (hereinafter referred to as the Occupational Accident Medical Form), to receive occupational accident medical benefits.

The Ministry of Labor (MOL) said that according to the relevant Labor Insurance regulations, if the insured person has suffered an occupational injury or contracted an occupational disease, the insured person should take the Occupational Accident Medical Form issued by the insured unit, together with their national health insurance card and ID, to an NHI-contracted hospital or clinic. A portion of their medical expenses will be waived and meal fees for up to 30 days of hospitalization will be halved. If the insured unit fails to issue the forms as required by regulations, the insured can directly apply for the form at the local office of the Bureau of Labor Insurance, which will issue the forms after the situation is investigated and verified. In addition, if a worker is diagnosed with an occupational disease by a doctor, the doctor shall issue an occupational disease outpatient certificate, which will allow the worker to enjoy occupational accident medical benefits.

The MOL reminds the public that if workers do not have time to obtain an Occupational Accident Medical Form due to a sudden injury or illness, they should declare their status as a worker suffering an occupational accident when seeking medical treatment. They can apply to the Bureau of Labor Insurance for reimbursement of paid medical expenses afterwards.

Keywords: Occupational Accident Insurance, Medical Benefits, Medical Form

If an insured person is laid off due to business closure, dissolution, losses, business contractions, or other situations where the insured unit has been affected by the pandemic, that situation is considered as an involuntary separation from employment under the Employment Insurance Act. So long as the criteria for unemployment benefits are met, the insured person can apply for unemployment benefits.

If the insured person had participated in Employment Insurance for a total of 1 year or more within 3 years before the involuntary separation and withdrawal from insurance, and had the ability to work and the willingness to continue working, he/she can bring the proof of employment separation issued by the insured unit, national identification card, and other relevant materials to a public employment service institution to register for job placement and apply for unemployment benefits in person. If, within 14 days, job placement or vocational training arrangements have failed, the public employment service institution shall then issue a letter of unemployment confirmation and request that the BLI issue unemployment benefits.

Said unemployment benefits shall be 60% of the insured person's average monthly insurance salary in the six-month period before employment separation and withdrawal from insurance, and the benefits may be paid for up to six months. In the event where the insured person was 45 years old or above when separated from employment and withdrawn from insurance or has proof of mental or physical impairment, payment of unemployment benefits may be extended to a maximum of nine months. Furthermore, during the period when an applicant is receiving unemployment benefits, an extra 10% shall be added to the unemployment benefits for each one of the insured person's dependents: non-working spouse, minor children, or children with mental or physical impairment. The said extra benefits shall be given for up to two dependents (maximum of 20%); in other words, the applicant may receive up to 80% of their average monthly insurance salary as unemployment benefits.

If the insured person can continue to apply for unemployment benefits, they should remember to visit a public employment service institution in person every month for reconfirmation of unemployment, and he/she must provide at least two records of seeking work before he/she can continue to claim benefits.

Keywords: Unemployment, Involuntary Separation, Unemployment Benefits

Premier Su Tseng-Chang listened to the Employment Measures for Fresh Graduates report by the Ministry of Labor (MOL) at the June 4 Executive Yuan meeting and injected a total of NT$6.6 billion into five measures under the three strategies of "Push Into Employment", "Train Special Skills", and "Encourage Employment" to help new graduates find employment without undue worry.

First of all, in order to help young people "Push Into Employment", the government is promoting "Youth Employment Incentives Plan" to encourage new graduates to find employment as soon as possible and continue working for more than six months. The maximum amount of assistance is NT$30,000. In addition, for young people who are willing to work in specific manufacturing or care services sector jobs, incentives are provided for up to 18 months and a maximum of NT$108,000 to increase their job hunting motivation.

Secondly, in order to assist young people by "Training Special Skills", the government is providing occupational training and subsidies of up to NT$100,000 of training costs through the "Industrial Talents Pilot Program" and providing up to NT$96,000 in training assistance to encourage new graduates to learn new skills and invest in key industries to increase workplace competitiveness.

In addition, employers are Encouraged to Employ and provide young people with employment opportunities, amongst which the "Youth's Employment Ultimate Program" will provide additional subsidies of up to NT $108,000 to companies to provide opportunities for learning by doing. Finally, the MOL will continue to pay attention to the employment situation of young people and initiate the "Youth Employment Assistance Plan" at appropriate times, and invite employers to work together to assist young people while also enhancing their corporate competitiveness.

In order to provide young people who have just graduated from school with job searching and secure employment information and opportunities in the post-pandemic stage, and to enable employers to find the best fresh talents for their companies, the MOL has been promoting online job fairs since May and has been promoting the above project successively since June 15. For more information about the event and various projects, visit the MOL Coronavirus Disease 2019 Assistance page and the TaiwanJobs website, or call 1955 or 0800-777888.

Keywords: New Graduates, Youth Employment, Youth Employment Incentives

Labor Minister Hsu Ming-Chun attended the Taiwan Federation of Labor's 2020 National Model Workers Recognition Assembly on June 20, 2020, and the Taiwan Federation of Labor's mask presentation ceremony to the Tokyo Locality of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation. In addition to personally presenting awards to the Taiwan Federation of Labor's model workers for the year 2020, the minister also witnessed a special moment of mutual assistance between the trade unions of Taiwan and Japan in a joint effort to prevent further spread of the pandemic.

The Ministry of Labor (MOL) stated that due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many trade unions are cooperating with the government's pandemic prevention measures and have postponed various events. However, it was due to the sacrifices and cooperation from all sectors that the pandemic in Taiwan has come under control. As the pandemic abates, the various labor unions are also holding a range of events in accordance with mandated pandemic prevention measures. Labor Minister Hsu personally attended today's Taiwan Federation of Labor event recognizing model workers. In addition to expressing the government's affirmation and support for model workers, she also thanked the trade unions for their cooperation and assistance during the pandemic.

The MOL further stated that Taiwan's experience and strategies in dealing with pandemic prevention have been widely recognized by the international community. As a result, the Taiwan Federation of Labor recently received a request for assistance from the Tokyo Locality of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation asking for facial masks to prevent the spread of the pandemic. Chairman of the federation Cai Ming-Zhen thanked the Tokyo Local of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation for their monetary assistance during the 1999 Jiji earthquake and, working on the principle of "pandemic prevention has no borders," coordinated the procurement of masks from the Central Epidemic Command Center through the MOL. With assistance from the MOL, the Taiwan Federation of Labor successfully purchased 20,000 masks and donated them to the Tokyo Locality as soon as the masks became available to the public. This is a truly remarkable example of mutual international assistance between two countries that came together to establish a solid line of defense against the spread of the pandemic, and demonstrates the spirit of "Taiwan Can Help!"

Keywords: Trade Union Event, International Exchange, Trade Union Exchange

On May 15, Labor Minister Hsu Ming-Chun specially led the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) together with Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs Tseng Wen-Sheng to the site of the Offshore Wind Power Generation First Phase Project: Construction of the Demonstration Wind Farm to conduct a joint examination. They reviewed the implementation of on-site safety and health facilities, pointed out missing elements, proposed improvements and requested the project manager Taiwan Power Company to faithfully supervise the construction company responsible to enhance safety management.

Minister Hsu Ming-Chun stated that green energy is an important national policy. According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Four-year Wind Power Promotion Project, the development of offshore wind power generation will be the focus of future power supply. The nation must also take into account the health and safety of workers while developing its green energy industry. The Demonstration Offshore Wind Power Generation Farm Construction Project audited today is one of the most critical projects for the development of green energy technology in Taiwan. According to the past experiences of foreign construction projects, common risks during construction include workers falling, falling objects, collapses, electric shock, collisions and drowning. In order to urge public institutions to implement construction safety management, the Ministry of Labor recently established an inter-ministerial conference platform for state-owned enterprises. At the same time, the Ministry hopes to ensure the safety and health of labor operations through joint examination by inter-ministerial committees.

Minister Hsu Ming-Chun actively inquired about the working conditions of workers and their opinions on site. She emphasized that offshore wind power projects involve environmental factors such as climate, changing tides, and working conditions both under and above water which all contribute to high operational risks. The construction team should implement comprehensive risk assessment and management during the planning, design, construction and maintenance phases to ensure a safe and healthy working environment for workers while implementing the nation's green energy policy safely and smoothly.

Keywords: Offshore Wind Power Generation, Green Energy, Occupational Safety and Health

The efforts for prevention and control of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Taiwan have arrived at the next stage. Institute of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health (ILOSH) has pointed out that, the better the ventilation control measures in bedrooms of long-term care organizations (LTCs), the lower the risk of disease transmission.

In addition to implementing access control and personal hygiene protocols for personnel, long-term care institutions should also adopt appropriate environmental control measures. For example: I. Encourage visitors to use video visits; II. Close bed curtains to limit the spread of droplets; III. Designate a well ventilated and spacious area for guests to meet.

Regarding social distancing, the government has given a reasonable rule of "1.5 meters indoors and 1 meter outdoors." However, if a tape measure is not available, some natural lengths of body limbs can help to set the physical distances people are required to maintain. A simple method is provided as follows, based on kinematic characteristics of droplets and bio-aerosols, and different body sizes among people: I. Stretching both arms out to one's left and right, one should not reach to the cheek of either neighbor; II. Stretching one's arms forward, one should not reach the back of the person in front; III. Two people stretching their arms out towards each other, should not reach each other's fingertips.

If natural wind outside a bedroom is too weak, natural ventilation indoors becomes less effective. In these cases, ventilator fans can be deployed on the transoms, following proper practices. Simple suggestions are provided as follows: I. Install fans on transoms in high locations to prevent strong winds from blowing directly on the human body; II. The space between the fan and windows needs to be sealed tight to prevent short-cutting airflows; III. Doors in a bedroom are encouraged to be normally closed, while windows in the bedroom can be manipulated to be opened or closed and work with supply/exhaust fan settings, to regulate room pressure and ventilation modes (Figure 1). IV. If the bedroom has two ventilation fans, one should be a supply fan and the other an exhaust fan (Figure 2).

In addition, the arrival of summer means that long-term care organizations will inevitably use more air conditioning. Due to the characteristics of airborne bio-aerosols, the following suggestions are provided in regards to ventilation and air conditioning: I. Ceiling fans or circulation fans should be used in combination with air conditioning to encourage harmful particles to fall or adhere on any surface of indoor environment; II. Air-conditioned spaces should not be fully closed, and every single room must have a single window opened to a single fist-wide gap (the three "singles"); III. Use dehumidifiers to help control relative humidity of indoor air.

Keywords: Ventilation, Long-term Care, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)