Editing Economy of Taiwan (section)

==Labor policy==
===Union policies===
The Labor Union Laws, legislated by the [[Kuomintang]] (KMT) on the mainland, gave Taiwan workers the right to unionize. However, prior to the democratization of Taiwan, the functions of trade unions were limited under strict regulation and state [[corporatism]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Chu|first=Yin-wah|date=1996|title=Democracy and Organized Labor in Taiwan: The 1986 Transition|journal=Asian Survey|volume=36|issue=5|pages=495–510|doi=10.2307/2645496|jstor=2645496}}</ref> Under the Labor Union Laws, workers were only allowed to be organized at the companies, which means industry level unions were forbidden. Also, only one union could exist within each company or geographical area.<ref name=":0" /> Special occupational groups such as teachers were not allowed to unionize.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Shi|first=Shih-Jiunn|date=2012|title=Shifting dynamics of the welfare politics in Taiwan: from income maintenance to labour protection|journal=Journal of Asian Public Policy|volume=5|pages=82–96|doi=10.1080/17516234.2012.662357|s2cid=153774601}}</ref> The right to strike and [[collective bargaining]] were also hamstrung by law.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Wang|first=James W. Y.|date=2010|title=The Political Economy of Collective Labour Legislation in Taiwan|journal=Journal of Current Chinese Affairs|volume=39|issue=3|pages=51–85|doi=10.1177/186810261003900303|doi-access=free}}</ref> The Collective Bargaining Agreement in 1930 stipulated that collective bargains were not legally valid without government approval.<ref name=":2" /> The democratization in 1986 brought dramatic changes to union participation and policies. Between 1986 and 1992, unionized workers increased by 13%.<ref name=":2" /> A number of autonomous, non-official trade unions emerged, including the [[Taiwan Confederation of Trade Unions]] (TCTU) which acquired legal recognition in 2000.<ref name=":2" /> The amendments to the Labor Union Laws and Collective Bargaining Agreement both became effective in the early 21st century. The amended Labor Union Law lifted the limitations on special occupational groups from collective representation.<ref name=":1" /> The Collective Bargaining Agreement Act in 2008 guaranteed trade unions the power to negotiate with employers.<ref name=":2" />

===Employment protection===
Taiwan's labor rights and [[employment protection legislation|employment protections]] increased with its democratization progress in the 1980s, and it still has a relatively high level of employment protection compared to other East Asia countries.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Caraway|first=Teri|date=2009|title=Labor Rights in East Asia: Progress or Regress?|journal=Journal of East Asian Studies|volume=9|issue=2|pages=153–186|doi=10.1017/s1598240800002976|doi-access=free}}</ref> Implemented in August 1984, Labor Standards Law was the first comprehensive employment protection law for Taiwan workers.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last=Lin|first=Yen-Ling|date=2013|title=Wage Effects of Employment Protection Legislation in Taiwan|journal=Asian Economic Journal|volume=27|issue=2|pages=145–161|doi=10.1111/asej.12007|url=http://tkuir.lib.tku.edu.tw:8080/dspace/bitstream/987654321/80045/2/AEJ2190Dfinalversion.pdf}}</ref> Prior to its implementation, the Factory Act was the primary law governing labor affairs, but was ineffective in practice because of its narrow coverage of businesses and issues and absence of penalties for violation.<ref name=":3" /> In contrast, Labor Standards Law covered a broader range of businesses and labor affairs and detailed penalties for its violation. It regulated a period of notice before firing employees and also required a higher level of [[Severance package|severance payment]].<ref name=":3" /> Other labor issues were also regulated by the law, including contract, wage, overtime payment, compensations for occupational accidents, etc.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last=Camhon|first=Kan|date=2011|title=The Effects of Employment Protection on Labor Turnover: Empirical Evidence from Taiwan|journal=Economic Inquiry|volume=49|issue=2|pages=398–433|doi=10.1111/j.1465-7295.2009.00278.x|citeseerx=10.1.1.362.6008|s2cid=154825637}}</ref> Penalties for employer violation were also clear in the law, stating fines and criminal liabilities.<ref name=":3" /> [[Ministry of Labor (Taiwan)|Council of Labor Affairs]] (CLA) was set up on 1 August 1987 to help with labor inspection and the enforcement of the Labor Standards Law.<ref name=":4" />

In Taiwan, companies with at least a single employee have the compulsion to contribute to the insurer's employment service insurance premium. The share of labor insurance is divided into a 7:2:1 ratio between employer, employee, and state.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bureau of Labor Insurance Website-Employer-Labors Insurance and Employment Insurance Premium-Premium Sharing Ratio|url=https://www.bli.gov.tw/en/0010791.html|access-date=2021-03-13|website=www.bli.gov.tw}}</ref> As far as a contribution towards social security, companies should pay at least 6% of the wages of its employees towards the social security.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bureau of Labor Insurance Website-Employment Insurance-Introduction|url=https://www.bli.gov.tw/en/0007480.html|access-date=2021-03-13|website=www.bli.gov.tw}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-03-09|title=Hiring Employees in Taiwan: Benefits, Time-Off, & Termination|url=https://nnroad.com/blog/general/how-to-hire-employees-in-taiwan-benefits-time-off-termination/|access-date=2021-03-13|website=NNRoad}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Aspalter|first=Christian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OiAlDwAAQBAJ|title=The Routledge International Handbook to Welfare State Systems|date=2017-01-12|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-317-04108-5}}</ref>

===Active labor market policies===
[[Active labour market policies]] were carried out in Taiwan in the late 20th and early 21st centuries as a result of economic structural changes caused by [[globalization]] and [[deindustrialization]].<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal|last=Lue|first=Jen-Der|date=2013|title=Promoting Work: A Review of Active Labour Market Policies in Taiwan|journal=Journal of Asian Public Policy|volume=6|pages=81–98|doi=10.1080/17516234.2013.765184|s2cid=153955361}}</ref> [[Unemployment]] increased and reached approximately 5% in 2002 and 2009.<ref name=":5" /> A set of policies was adopted to help the unemployed and provide jobs. The Employment Insurance Act of 2002 grants income security during unemployment but, at the same time, requires beneficiaries to use all available resources to find jobs.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Shi|first=Shih-Jiunn|date=2012|title=Shifting Dynamics of the Welfare Politics in Taiwan: from Income Maintenance to Labour Protection|journal=Journal of Asian Public Policy|volume=5|pages=82–96|doi=10.1080/17516234.2012.662357|s2cid=153774601}}</ref> The Multi-Faceted Job Creation Program, first introduced in 1999, creates job in the third sector groups, especially in [[nonprofit organization]]s.<ref name=":5" /> It subsidizes those companies to provide [[Vocational education|vocational trainings]] and job opportunities.<ref name=":6">Fen-ling Chen. "Unemployment and the Government's Role in a Risk Society: A Case Study in Taiwan". Risk and Public Policy in East Asia, edited by Raymond K.H. Chan et al., 2010, 115-131.</ref> The Public Sector Temporary Employment Creation Program directly addressed the [[2008 financial crisis]]. Unlike the Multi-Faceted Job Creation Programs, the Public Sector Temporary Employment Creation Program creates jobs in the government itself. From 2008 to 2009, the government was estimated to create 102,000 job opportunities through that program.<ref name=":2" /> A job creation project was also implemented to help young people by subsidizing the hiring of young people in universities and private companies.<ref name=":6" />

===Working hours===
On 30 July 1984, Taiwan implemented an eighty-six article Labor Standards Act under Presidential Order No.14069.<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |url=https://law.moj.gov.tw/ENG/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?pcode=N0030001 |title=Labor Standards Act - Article Content - Laws & Regulations Database of the Republic of China |access-date=2 August 2019 |archive-date=10 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190810150831/https://law.moj.gov.tw/Eng/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?PCode=N0030001 |url-status=live }}</ref> The act defined the standard work week as 40 labor hours with an eight-hour limit per day, permitting an overtime-included maximum of forty-eight labor hours per week.<ref name=":0" />

Article 25 of the Labor Standards Act upholds there will be no sexual discrimination in the conditions of workers,<ref name=":22" /> however, because the Taiwanese culture and thus political economy traditionally "categorizes female employees as naturally marriage- and family-oriented," women are assumed to obtain employment in fields that are limited to these ideals.<ref>Chin TF. (2018) Being Employed as a ‘Nyusheng’: Gendered and Heteronormative Management in the Workplace. In: Everyday Gender at Work in Taiwan. Gender, Sexualities and Culture in Asia. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore</ref> As a result of feminist ideals becoming more prevalent with women seeking equal work conditions in modern societies such as Taiwan, even marital status policy and immigration policy have been affected as women seek less patriarchal roles to the point where Taiwanese men have sought higher rates of transnational marriages since the 1990s.<ref>TSENG, H. (2016). Racialization of Foreign Women in the Transnational Marriage Market of Taiwan. In Zheng T. (Ed.), Cultural Politics of Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Asia (pp. 205-222). Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvvn5tw.16</ref>