Taiwan to tackle forced labor issue after U.S. trade deal

Taipei, Feb. 14 (CNA) Taiwan will step up efforts to address forced labor issues following the signing of a new trade agreement with the United States, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) said Friday, pledging to align domestic practices more closely with international labor and trade standards.

"In international trade, fair treatment of workers has become an essential element of global trade competitiveness," Labor Minister Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) said at a press conference held by the Executive Yuan to brief the public on the trade pact signed in Washington, D.C.

￭ Taiwan-U.S. trade pact includes forced labor import ban

The agreement caps U.S. tariffs on Taiwanese goods at 15 percent and expands mutual market access. Both sides also reached a consensus on labor protections under the pact, including a ban on imports of goods produced using forced labor, Hung said.

Calling the deal a "triple win" for employers, employees and both economies, Hung said Taiwan's growing role in global supply chains has made aligning with international standards and strengthening labor safeguards increasingly urgent.

For this reason, Taiwan will, through domestic review procedures, adopt determinations under Section 307 of the U.S. Tariff Act of 1930 to prohibit the import of goods made with forced labor, Hung said.

In addition, the ministry plans to issue guidelines for businesses to prevent forced labor by the end of February and to lower the threshold for establishing labor unions within five years, he said.

The MOL also intends to strengthen protections for migrant workers, an area closely linked to forced labor concerns. Proposed legal amendments would ban the confiscation of migrant workers' identity documents and eliminate recruitment fees for migrant workers in the manufacturing and fishing sectors within three years, Hung said.

All draft amendments will be submitted to the Executive Yuan after the Lunar New Year holiday.