Foreign labor may be allowed in waste, recycling industries from March

Taipei, Feb. 3 (CNA) Foreign labor may be allowed to work for waste treatment and recycling companies in Taiwan as early as March this year, according to a new proposal by the Ministry of Environment (MOENV).

The MOENV's Resource Circulation Administration (RECA) plans to hold discussions on foreign workers potentially entering the sector with the Ministry of Labor's (MOL) Workforce Development Agency, local governments and businesses on Feb. 11.

The RECA estimates that more than 660 businesses might hire over 1,000 foreign workers, if made eligible to do so.

Currently, companies in the waste treatment and recycling sectors cannot obtain a Factory Registration Certificate required to apply to hire foreign workers since they technically do not manufacture goods or possess a qualifying factory site, according to RECA Deputy Director-General Lin Chien-san (林健三).

The administration's new initiative, however, would enable such companies to apply to hire foreign workers, so long as they offered a "starting salary of at least the minimum wage" and were not able to hire local Taiwanese workers for the positions, Lin said.

Lin said the RECA has already submitted its proposal to the MOL, and emphasized that the Environment Ministry would be responsible for reviewing the applications of businesses seeking to hire foreign labor under the initiative.