The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) disclosed on Sunday that Taiwan’s Labor Ministry had increased the migrant domestic helpers’ and minimum monthly wages of home-based caregivers.
According to a report from Labor Attache Cesar Chavez Jr. of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Taipei, the migrants’ monthly wage has increased by 17.6 percent for the first time since 2015, when it was NT$8,250 less than that of Taiwanese caregivers.
Both new immigrants arriving in Taiwan and those who are entering into new contracts with their employers in Taiwan would benefit from the revised rates, which became effective on 10 August.
The POLO report also disclosed that the Ministry of Labor’s minimum wage committee has increased the monthly salary for migrant employees from NT$17,000 to NT$20,000, but clarified that the new rate does not apply to migrant employees who entered into a contract with their employer before 10 August.
“The labor ministry has also advised Taiwanese employers that in order to encourage worker retention, salaries should be increased by NT$1,000 after three years and another NT$1,000 for workers who are six years in service,” Chavez said.
He added that low-income and low-middle-income firms will be qualified for a NT$3,000 monthly government subsidy for the following three years, or a maximum of NT$108,000, in order to pay the new wage rate to their employees.
From May to 9 August, Chavez said that the POLO processed roughly 2,400 requests for housekeepers and caregivers in Taipei alone.