Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers yesterday proposed amendments to the Employment Insurance Act (就業保險法) to codify the 80 percent parental leave allowance into law and provide full-pay subsidies for disadvantaged families that would be funded in part by the government.
The draft changes aim to address Taiwan’s demographic crisis, KMT legislators Wu Tsung-hsien (吳宗憲), Huang Chien-pin (黃建賓) and Niu Hsu-ting (牛煦庭) told a news conference at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.
The nation’s birthrate hit a historic low last month, with only 6,523 births recorded — the first time monthly births have dropped below 7,000, Wu said.
Photo: CNA
Many young families are willing to have children, but are deterred by mortgage payments, rent, childcare costs and workplace pressures, he said.
They are reluctant to take parental leave or risk income disruption, he said, adding that the government should provide stable support for families willing to raise children.
While many believe parental leave offers 80 percent of their salary, the act guarantees only a 60 percent subsidy, with the additional 20 percent provided through the government’s subsidy guidelines, Wu said.
The amendments do not seek to increase the burden on the employment insurance fund, but to formalize the additional 20 percent subsidy as a statutory obligation funded by the government, he said.
As of October last year, the labor force participation rate among married women aged 15 to 49 in Taiwan was 78.63 percent, indicating that most households rely on dual incomes, Huang said.
For many families, taking leave not only reduces income, but also creates staffing pressures for small and medium-sized enterprises, he said.
The Ministry of Labor should introduce comprehensive subsidies for replacement labor to ease the burden on businesses, he said.
As parental leave has been made available on a daily basis, fathers should participate more in childcare, Niu said.
In January and last month, 1,237 men applied for parental leave, accounting for 44.3 percent of applicants, significantly higher than last year’s 27.8 percent, he said.
The proposed amendments would require the government to annually allocate a recurring budget to ensure consistent subsidies, allowing parents to take leave with peace of mind, he said.
The bill would also allow disadvantaged groups — including low and middle-income households, single parent families and disabled people — to apply for subsidies of up to full salary, he said.
‘UNFRIENDLY’: Changing the nationality listing of Taiwanese residents to ‘China’ goes against EU foreign policy as well as democratic and human rights principles, MOFA said Taiwan yesterday called on Denmark to correct its designation of the nationality of Taiwanese residents as “China” or face retaliatory measures. The Danish government in 2024 changed the nationality of Taiwanese citizens on their residence permits from “Taiwan” to “China.” The decision goes against EU foreign policy and contravenes democratic and human rights principles, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said. Denmark should present a solution acceptable to Taiwan as soon as possible and correct the erroneous designation to preserve the longstanding friendship between the two nations, Hsiao said. The issue could damage Denmark’s image and business reputation in Taiwan,
KEY INDUSTRY: The vice premier discussed a plan to create a non-red drone supply chain by next year, which has been allocated a budget of more than NT$7.2 billion The government has budgeted NT$44.2 billion (US$1.38 billion) to cultivate Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) industry over the next five years, which would make the nation a major player in the industry’s democratic supply chain in the Asia-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. Cho made the remarks during a visit to the facilities of Cub Elecparts Inc (為升電裝). Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Su-yueh (陳素月) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hsieh Yi-fong (謝依鳳) also participated in the trip. Cub Elecparts has transitioned from the automotive industry to the defense industry, which is the top priority among the nation’s
SUFFICIENT: The president said Taiwan has enough oil for next month, with reserves covering more than 100 days and natural gas enough for 12 to 14 days A restart plan for the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Wanli District (萬里) and the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant in Pingtung County’s Hengchun Township (恆春) would be submitted to the Nuclear Safety Commission by the end of the month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, reversing the government’s policy to abolish nuclear energy. On May 17 last year, Taiwan shut down its last nuclear reactor and became the first non-nuclear nation in East Asia, fulfilling the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government’s pledge of a “nuclear-free homeland.” Even without nuclear power, Taiwan can maintain a stable electricity supply until 2032,
Taiwan climbed to its highest position in global export rankings in more than three decades last year, buoyed by demand linked to artificial intelligence (AI) that lifted shipments of semiconductors and technology products, Ministry of Finance data released yesterday showed. Taiwan accounted for 2.4 percent of global exports last year, or about US$640 billion, ranking 12th worldwide, the data showed. That was up four places from a year earlier and marked the nation’s best ranking since 1994, the ministry said. Taiwan’s share of global exports rose by 0.5 percentage points from the previous year, the largest increase among major economies, reflecting the nation’s