Anger over Taiwanese CLA policy to deduct compensation pay from pension payouts
A retired Taiwanese shipbuilding worker, Mr. Lee, developed mesothelioma after long-term exposure to asbestos in the workplace. After his family spent a year to obtain validation that his illness was caused by his work as a shipbuilder, the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) informed them that his occupational injury compensation and his labor pension payments canceled each other out.
This has angered Lee’s family and labor representatives, who held a protest outside the CLA building on July 9, 2009. The secretary-general of the Taiwan Association for Victims of Occupational Injuries argued that occupational injury compensation should not be deducted from labor pension payouts. The association has called upon the CLA to amend Article 59 of the Labor Standards Law, as pension is a form of delayed payment that shouldn’t count as compensation for occupational injuries.
Section Chief Chen Hui-min of the Department of Labor Standards responded by saying that, in Mr. Lee’s case, Mr. Lee did not recognize that his illness was work-related for many years after he retired. Furthermore, the council recognized that his illness did not void his right to proper compensation, and they would be seeking the advice of experts and academics in order to amend the regulations.
For the full story, go to Taipei Times.
