Taipei: Several labor groups on Wednesday urged the Ministry of Labor (MOL) to place all migrant workers under the newer pension system during a protest against a new measure that the ministry said will allow greater access by migrant workers to the pension scheme. Gathering outside the ministry in Taipei, groups including the Taiwan International Workers' Association (TIWA) criticized the planned measure set to take effect on April 1, under which employers will be required to place all blue-collar migrant workers who have worked for them for 10 years or more under the older pension system.

According to Focus Taiwan, the MOL announced that employers will be required to enroll eligible migrant workers in the older pension system, mandating contributions of 2-15 percent of each worker's monthly salary to a pooled labor retirement reserve fund rather than an individual account. While this measure expands the older pension system's scope, labor groups argue that the eligibility criteria, including a decade-long tenure with the same employer, make pension benefits largely inaccessible for most migrant workers.

TIWA official Wu Jing-ru highlighted the challenges faced by many migrant workers in the industrial sector, noting that "often see their contracts expire or are transferred to new employers," making it difficult to meet the 10-year requirement. Wu also warned of the potential for employers to "legally end a worker's employment" before they become eligible, thus avoiding pension contributions.

The labor groups are advocating for the extension of the newer pension system, established for Taiwanese workers in 2005, to all migrant workers, including domestic caregivers and helpers, to ensure equal treatment with local employees. This newer system requires employers to contribute at least 6 percent of a worker's monthly wage to an individual pension account instead of a pooled fund.

In response, the MOL did not clarify its decision to apply the older system, which has stricter eligibility rules and is being phased out for local workers, to migrant workers. It maintained that migrant workers are covered by the older system and can claim retirement benefits upon meeting legal requirements, asserting that "their rights are the same as those of local workers covered by the older system."

Conversely, the International Association of Family and Employers with Disabilities, an employers' group, expressed concerns that making the new system mandatory for all migrant workers would significantly increase care costs for households. Members of this association, along with the Taiwan Solidarity Party, voiced their opposition to the labor groups' proposals outside the Ministry of Labor on Wednesday.