KMT voices concern over migrant worker plan - Taipei Times

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding.

Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program.

The caucus' opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that "the risk is too high," KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said.

Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times

Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that there are systemic flaws in the system, he said, adding that the Executive Yuan has not fixed the problem, but is now "opening the doors even wider."

KMT Legislator Wang Yu-min (王育敏) said the Executive Yuan must come up with supporting measures and communicate them to the public before implementing the policy.

Taiwan faces a severe labor shortage, but it does not mean the government can hastily introduce migrant workers in the absence of a social consensus or supporting measures, KMT Legislator Huang Chien-pin (黃建賓) said.

He added that anxiety over the policy is based on safety concerns and not prejudice.

Huang cited an Indian National Crime Records Bureau report as saying there were 445,256 reported crimes against women in India in 2022, while more than 31,000 cases of rape were reported that year, or an average of 85 per day.

That is why more than 30,000 people petitioned the Public Policy Online Participation Platform to show their opposition to the introduction of Indian migrant workers, he said.

Separately, the Democratic Progressive Party caucus said the proposal was previously reviewed by the Legislative Yuan's Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee and passed with support from opposition parties.

However, the KMT now criticizes the policy as being portrayed as a "flood of monsters," it said.

"As countries compete fiercely for labor amid worker shortages, does the KMT intend to reject Indian workers and only accept Chinese workers?" it added.

DPP Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said that migrant workers are subject to the same strict regulations, with no relaxed standards for Indian workers.

Populism should not be used to stigmatize specific countries or incite racial discrimination, she said.

Hung later wrote on Facebook that any implementation would "depend on demand from industries" and "whether India's proposed framework meets Taiwan's requirements."

Taiwan and India signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in February 2024 to address Taiwan's labor shortage, Hung said.

The MOU was sent to the Legislative Yuan for review in mid-2024 and received cross-party backing, prompting the Ministry of Labor to begin follow-up negotiations with India, he said.

As Taiwan faces ongoing labor shortages, the ministry has a responsibility to diversify sources of foreign labor — a move anticipated by many industries — and has spent the past two years assessing conditions, Hung said.

Additional reporting by Lin Che-yuan and CNA