On 1 May 2011, International Labour Day, various workers groups in Taiwan rallied a walk in the afternoon campaigning against poverty and asking for wage increase. President Ma Ying-Jeou, the Taiwanese leader, stated while attending in the “Taipei Labour Meeting Day” Expo in Taipei that the improvement on working conditions are ongoing, the government will take workers’ comments into consideration and will continue implementing the policies laid down. In order to solve the problem of companies lacking workers and to respond to the workers seeking jobs, the Taiwan Council of Labour Affairs (CLA) convened the “Labour Meeting Day” Expo on 1 May 2011 as a venue for both sides to meet. Hundreds of companies attended and more than 6,000 job positions are open.
President Ma addressed the workers’ demand on this year Labour Day that: “We will listen to the workers’ opinions and will do our best to improve their working conditions. Right now we are taking steps forward and this process is still ongoing.”
At the same time, on 29 April 2011, Prime Minister Wu Dunyi attended a breakfast with the representatives of 10 big labour unions in Taiwan to listen to stories and problems of the workers. Prime Minister Wu said that in an attempt to protect the rights of workers and to increase their welfare, which is important goals in the government policy, adjustments have been made to 3 important labour legislations. Also the government has urged employers to increase wages for workers and has ordered the CLA, Ministry of Economic Affairs, and other related agencies to join force in reducing unemployment rate.
