Number of furloughed workers falls as manufacturing sector stabilizes

Taipei, Sept. 2 (CNA) The number of workers on formal unpaid leave programs fell more than 150 in the past half month due mainly to a stable recovery of the export-oriented manufacturing sector, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) said on Monday.

Data compiled by the MOL showed the number of workers on the government-subsidized unpaid leave programs fell to 4,459 as of the end of August, down 158 from 4,617 on Aug. 16.

However, the number of employers using the government's furlough programs rose to 275 as of the end of August from 268 on Aug. 16.

Huang Wei-chen (黃維琛), director of the MOL's Department of Labor Standards and Equal Employment, told CNA that the fall in the number of furloughed workers and the slight increase in the number of employers implementing furlough programs largely reflected the stabilizing manufacturing sector.

Huang indicated that some sectors in Hualien, eastern Taiwan affected by a massive 7.2 magnitude earthquake that hit off the east coastal county in early April have yet to fully recover.

The impacted sectors are hotels, food & beverage, retail and wholesale, and travel and tourism.

According to the MOL, the number of furloughed workers in Hualien rose by 19 from 560 to 579 during the two weeks, while the number of employers using unpaid leave programs increased to 57 from 56 over the 15 days.