Furloughed workers fall to 3-year low as rubber firm ends program

Taipei, July 2 (CNA) The number of workers in formal furlough programs in Taiwan dipped to its lowest point in just over three years as a rubber product supplier ended its unpaid leave program, according to the Ministry of Labor (MOL).

Data released by the MOL on Monday showed that the number of workers in furlough programs around Taiwan that have been reported to the MOL fell to 4,685 as of June 30, the lowest level since June 1, 2021, when a total of 4,125 furloughed workers were reported.

The number of employers that had furlough programs in place, however, rose by 10 from 262 as of June 15 to 272 as of the end of the month, the MOL's data showed.

The latest number of furloughed workers fell by 653 from 5,338 as of June 15 after a rubber product manufacturer ended its unpaid leave program because of an increase in orders, putting more than 580 workers back to work, said Li Yi-hsuan (李怡萱), a specialist with the MOL's Labor Conditions and Employment Equality.

Speaking with CNA, Li said the higher employer numbers in the latest data were due to mostly smaller companies reporting unpaid leave programs.

The export-oriented manufacturing sector reported 3,886 furloughed workers as of June 30, down from 4,550 as of June 15, MOL data showed.

Overall, however, the local job market has stabilized significantly compared with more than 58,000 furloughed workers recorded on Aug. 31, 2021 at the peak of labor market instability during the COVID-19 pandemic, Li said.

In the service sector, the retail and wholesale industry reported 370 furloughed workers as of June 30, slightly up from 367 as of June 15.

In addition, the lodging and food/beverage industry had 258 workers in furlough programs as of June 30, also slightly up from 248 as of June 15.

Despite the service sector being stable around Taiwan, there were some signs of weakness in Hualien County, which was rocked by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake on April 3 that hurt its tourism sector.

More than 100 furloughed workers were reported in the county as of June 30, covering the transportation and logistics, lodging and food/beverage and arts/entertainment/leisure sectors, according to the MOL.

The MOL updates its furloughed worker data on the 1st and 16th of every month and reports on the number of employees placed on furloughs registered by companies with the ministry.

Most of the enterprises implementing furlough programs are small companies that employ fewer than 50 people.

Unpaid leave programs typically last for less than three months, with employees taking five to eight days of unpaid leave per month, according to the MOL.