The Executive Yuan passed draft amendments to certain articles of the Act of Gender Equality in Employment and Article 19-2 of the Employment Insurance Act on July 1, 2021 per discussed with the Ministry of Labor (MOL). The drafts shall be sent to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation.

The key points of the current amendments are as follows:

The MOL further stated that after the amendments have been sent to the Legislative Yuan, the Ministry will dialogue with cross-party lawmakers to promote the passing of the amendments as soon as possible.

Keywords: Act of Gender Equality in Employment, Pregnancy Checkups Leaves, Unpaid Parental Leave

The Ministry of Labor (MOL) announced the amendments to certain articles of the Enforcement Rules of the Labor Insurance Act on June 8, 2021. Amendments were made to regulations related to insurance coverage and benefit claims to enhance the rights and interests of workers.

The MOL explained that Labor Insurance is an important social insurance policy that protects workers. To cater to the actual needs of workers and insured units, regulations related to insurance coverage and benefit claims will be reviewed and amended. The key points of the amendments to the Enforcement Rules of the Labor Insurance Act are as follows:

The MOL stated that the amendments have been enacted since June 8, 2021. Workers and insured units can contact the Bureau of Labor Insurance, MOL if they have questions related to insurance coverage and benefit claims or are unfamiliar with the application procedures. (Phone: 02-23961266).

Keywords: Labor Insurance, Insurance Benefits, Insured Unit Establishment

In order to reduce the burden of schooling for children of unemployed workers who were discharged involuntarily, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) offers tuition fee subsidies for children of unemployed workers in time with the beginning of school every year. The application period for the tuition fee subsidies for children of unemployed workers for the second semester of the 2020 Academic Year was from February 22 to March 17, 2021. The MOL received a total of 3,846 applications. The information provided for these applications was compared with files and data of the Labor Insurance, employment insurance, and unemployment files from the Bureau of Labor Insurance; applicants and their spouses' 2019 income information, as provided by the Ministry of Finance; as well as with all kinds of governmental subsidies from the Ministry of Education. All applications were reviewed and were notified of the results on June 17, 2021. After reviewing the applications of this semester, a total of 3,042 workers were eligible for subsidies. Among all applicants, 804 workers were not eligible, resulting in an eligibility rate of approximately 79.10%. A total of 3,662 children were eligible for subsidies, amounting to NT$80.74 million in subsidies.

The children of unemployed workers who were eligible for tuition fee subsidies this semester received: NT$4,000 for children attending public senior high schools or vocational schools; NT$6,000 for those attending private senior high schools or vocational schools; NT$13,600 for those attending public colleges or universities; and NT$24,000 for those attending private colleges or universities. In addition, unemployed workers who are the sole breadwinners of the family (for example, those who are divorced or widowed, or whose spouse cannot work owing to disabilities or major illnesses) or have two or more children in college or university will receive an additional 20% in subsidies.

Applicants can go to the MOL official website/thematic website's "tuition fee subsidies for children of unemployed workers online application search system" to view the results of their applications.

Keywords: Unemployed Workers, Involuntary Unemployment, Tuition Fee Subsidy

The Ministry of Labor (MOL) of Taiwan (R.O.C.) and the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KU Leuven) in Belgium, on behalf of its Research Institute for Work and Society (HIVA) signed a Cooperation Agreement and held a virtual meeting on July 1, 2021 to celebrate this new partnership. Both parties also agreed to hold the first Labor Trends Seminar in November of this year and to also conduct a high-level meeting in Europe in 2022.

This Cooperation Agreement focuses on two major areas of labor relations and labor administration, with the objectives to promote international research and to enhance the effectiveness of practical applications. The agreement covers four major aspects, which includes the following: regular bilateral meetings, staff exchange programs, internship and training opportunities for both parties, and the translation and information sharing of publications.

According to LIN San-Quei, Vice Minister of Labor, Europe plays a leading role in labor relations and labor conditions globally. Under the framework of this Cooperation Agreement, we look forward to learning from KU Leuven's experiences and vision to help strengthen the groundwork of labor policies in Taiwan.

Chairperson HO Jiune-Jye of the Institute of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health (ILOSH) further commented that through this Cooperation Agreement with HIVA at KU Leuven, ILOSH looks forward to strengthening its research capabilities to provide workers in Taiwan with better occupational safety and health protection.

Keywords: ILOSH-MOL, HIVA-KU Leuven, Cooperation Agreement

To promote the importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, the United Nations (UN) declared July 15 as World Youth Skills Day. The Ministry of Labor (MOL) has been committed to the development of skill training for youth over the years, and has spared no effort to accomplish this task. Faced with the severe impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan continues to complete exchange and cooperation projects with the United Kingdom, Jamaica and other African and Asian countries through the power of technology, allowing youth skill training in Taiwan to continue to be in line with international standards. Thanks to these efforts, youths will be able to develop their skills without hindrance.

Taiwan joined WorldSkills International (WSI) in 1970 and together signed a Memorandum for Cooperation and Understanding in 2019, establishing the world's second WSI Capacity Building Center and has actively assisted developing countries in Africa, Central and South America, and Asia to enhance the skills of experts and competitors. Taiwan also signed the Memorandum of Understanding for Bilateral Skills Excellence Partnership with WorldSkills UK on May 20, 2021, to collaboratively achieve the development of skills excellence.

The MOL has always emphasized the development of skill training for young people and has spared no effort to accomplish this task. Faced with the challenges posed by the severe impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan utilizes the power of technology not only to maintain the momentum of skills training within Taiwan, but also to collaborate with the UK, Jamaica and other Asian countries, to conduct online workshops on skills of robotics, car painting, fashion technology, restaurant services, and cooking. The chief experts of each category took into account each country's economic and industrial standards and provided suggestions and collaborative exchanges in the establishment of regulations, competition drafting, machinery equipment, skills training, etc. In addition, the MOL has also completed digital educational videos in four different categories: restaurant services, automobile technology, mechatronics, and fashion technology. These are provided so that experts and teachers from both Taiwan and abroad may have an understanding of the grading criteria and categories of WorldSkills Competitions, thereby guiding the skill level of different nations to bridge the gap with international standards and nurture youths with world-class skills. In 2019, the MOL invited experts and competitors of the automobile industry from India to Taiwan to learn practical skills from each other. Taiwan assisted Indian contestants to win the country's first medal at the WorldSkills Competition Kazan 2019. This encouraged the Indian government to put more efforts in developing the youth's skills.

The MOL has successfully built an international skills platform with the help of the WSI Capacity Building Center, so that Taiwan's youths can participate in workshops and friendly matches hosted by WorldSkills International, WorldSkills Asia and WorldSkills UK. Young Taiwanese people have learned about the training methods and mentalities of different countries through these exchange programs, which broadened their horizons and gave them an international view.

In celebration of World Youth Skills Day, the MOL has arranged for the chief experts and competitors from Taiwan to go to countries in Africa, Central and South America, and Asia to receive technical training. Through practical actions, the skills of youths in various countries have thus improved, and began to draft the blueprints of their careers. Skills can open doors to young people. We encourage them to use their skills to boost the economic standards of their countries, thereby promoting the development of skills in their region.

Keywords: World Youth Skills Day, Capacity Building Center, Skills Competition

To avoid workers from shying away from legal cases due to the burden of litigation expenses, thereby losing the opportunity to exercise their legal rights and interests, and to provide a more complete and robust legal aid policy, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) reviews legal aid measures every year on a rolling basis, and continuously reviews and improves different aspects of legal aid measures.

In light of the costly litigation expenses related to occupational accidents or employers not adhering to relevant social insurance regulations, from July 1, 2021, and onwards, the types and items of necessary expenditures for labor incidents for legal aid have been expanded. In addition to providing aid for court costs and fees for motion due to a dispute with an employer involving labor contract termination in accordance with the Labor Standards Act, unpaid severance or labor pension, now compensation for occupational accidents, and cases of employers failing to insure a worker in accordance with the Labor Insurance Act or the Employment Insurance Act are all eligible for legal aid. Moreover, expenditures for labor incidents were previously limited to court costs and fees for motion; now, appraisal fees, daily travel expenses for witnesses, and any expenditures as determined by the court are all eligible for legal aid. The MOL hopes to provide more complete and robust legal aid for workers through expanding the scope of aid for necessary litigation expenses, thereby effectively easing the economic burden that workers face during litigations.

To make it easier for workers to apply for aid, the MOL has commissioned the Legal Aid Foundation (hereinafter referred to as the Foundation) to process necessary expenditures for labor incidents applications. Currently, workers can apply for both attorney to advocate the case and necessary expenditures for labor incidents through the Foundation. If workers require litigation aid, they can apply for attorney to advocate the case and necessary expenditures for labor incidents at the nearest Foundation branch. This will help advocate for the rights and interests of workers through legal means and ease the burden of their litigation expenses.

Keywords: Expanding the Scope of Aid, Legal Aid for Necessary Litigation Expenses, Legal Aid Foundation