The China Post news staff, Editorial
The recent violence against African migrant workers in South Africa has shocked and saddened the world. Upwards of 50 people have been killed by fellow Africans angered by people they see as economic invaders. All over the world in fact, local people are blaming migrant workers for lost jobs. Some politicians in the United States have made an entire career out of fighting what they see as the "menace" of foreign workers.
In Taiwan -- thankfully -- there has been no violence over the issue of migrant workers, but with the recent change in government, debate has been reignited. The Taiwan Confederation of Trade Union last week called for controls on the number of foreign workers as they believe unemployed local people would benefit from less competition for jobs. Others -- mainly from sections of the business sector -- are calling for even more foreign workers who are willing to work for the minimum wage which was increased in 2007 to NT$17,280 per month.
According to statistics released by the Council of Labor Agency, Taiwan is currently home to 123,000 legal Indonesian workers as well as 86,000 Thais. There are a further 85,000 people from the Philippines working in Taiwan.
But what's the bottom line? Do foreign workers take jobs from locals? A growing international consensus says they do not. Some American economists have argued that the national agricultural economy would fail without the work force provided by migrant workers -- many of whom are in America illegally. In fact New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg told Fox News back in 2006 that his city would not be able to function without these vital workers who perform services American workers are simply unwilling to do.
The story is similar in Taiwan, with the majority of foreign workers employed in strenuous construction jobs, tedious factory work or in the taxing work of caring for senior citizens. Singapore, a tiny state with a 30 percent foreign workforce has also seen calls for curbs, but in a recent article in Singapore's Straits Times newspaper, Singaporean Prime Minster Lee Hsien Loong was quoted as saying, "They (foreign workers) are not here to steal our jobs, but to help us enlarge the economic pie."
The idea that without foreign workers, Americans, Singaporeans and or Taiwanese would be willing to pick fruit, do construction work, look after elders or the infirm -- all for minimum wage -- is naive. Yes, Taiwan does have problems with unemployment and these problems need to be addressed. But as we begin another round of debate over workers from abroad, let's try to forge a "win-win" situation -- based on pragmatism -- in which both Taiwan and foreign workers benefit from the arrangement.
