MOL expands subsidy program for furloughed workers amid tariff shock

Taipei, Aug. 13 (CNA) The Ministry of Labor (MOL) on Wednesday announced an expanded bailout program in response to new tariffs of at least 20 percent imposed by the United States on July 31, increasing subsidies for furloughed workers in nine sectors projected to be affected.

At a press conference, Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said the MOL, in coordination with agencies overseeing various industrial sectors, have identified six additional sectors likely to be impacted by the U.S. tariffs. These are now eligible for subsidies under a bailout program launched in March.

The newly added sectors include food and feed product manufacturing, textiles, plastics manufacturing, metal product manufacturing, electrical equipment manufacturing, and automobile and auto parts manufacturing.

The original list covered rubber product manufacturing, machinery manufacturing, and the manufacture of other vehicles and related parts and components.

Under the expanded program, the monthly subsidy will increase from NT$8,700 (US$290.66)to NT$12,100 per recipient.

Hung said the subsidies will be jointly funded by the Employment Insurance Fund and the Employment Stabilization Fund, with disbursements made by the latter and reimbursed through a special budget to be proposed by the Cabinet.

Eligible recipients are workers in the designated sectors who have been on unpaid leave for at least 30 days. The program is retroactive to Aug. 1.

"At this juncture, we have set workers' right to work as our top priority and will work to prevent them from being laid off and becoming unemployed," Hung said.

Due to the tariffs' negative impact on the New Taiwan dollar's exchange rate, Hung added, the MOL has scrapped a previous requirement that applicants must be employed at companies with proof of exports to the U.S. in the past three years.

"The current state of international trade makes it difficult to determine whether exchange rate fluctuations or tariffs are causing the impacts," he explained.

The subsidies are available to workers covered by Employment Insurance, including Taiwanese nationals and foreign nationals, as well as Hong Kong and Macau residents married to Taiwanese nationals who have obtained a work-related residence permit.

On Monday, the Cabinet estimated that at least 42,000 workers will be affected by the U.S. tariffs.