Vietnamese People in Taiwan - Labour Migration

Labour Migration

Taiwan is one of the major destinations for Vietnamese labour migrants, especially in the manufacturing and fisheries industries. In 2002, Vietnamese workers in Taiwan composed 28.5% (13,200 individuals) of the 46,200 Vietnamese workers deployed overseas, making Taiwan the second most popular destination ahead of Laos and behind Malaysia; Taiwan maintained its importance as a destination even as migration to South Korea and Japan dropped off.

Since Taiwan's Council of Labor Affairs granted approval for their employment beginning in 1999, Vietnamese domestic helpers began to compose a significant proportion of the Vietnamese women in Taiwan. Between 2000 and 2003, the number of Vietnamese domestic helpers grew by fifteen times, from 2,634 individuals to 40,397 individuals, making them the second-largest group of domestic helpers by nationality, ahead of Filipinas and behind Indonesians; they composed one-third of all foreign domestic helpers on the island. Filipinas had formerly been the largest nationality among the population of domestic helpers, as widespread English language education in their country made them ideal tutors for the children of employers. However, their excellent command of English also disturbed the expected power dynamic between them and their employers, who often spoke very poor English; Vietnamese and Indonesians came to be preferred precisely because of their lower level of English, which put them at a disadvantage relative to their employers, and also served as a barrier to restrict their access to networks of support and information outside of the employer's home.

By 2004, Vietnam was sending 37,700 labourers to Taiwan each year, the bulk of them as domestic helpers and hospital workers. However, in 2005, frustrated by the desertion rate of Vietnamese workers, which was the highest rate among labourers of all Asian nationalities in Taiwan, the CLA imposed a freeze on the hiring of Vietnamese labourers in order to have time to discuss the situation with Vietnam's Department for Authority of Foreign Employed Labour, the department responsible for Vietnamese workers abroad. By the following year, the two departments had renegotiated the standard labour contracts for Vietnamese workers, extending them from three to six years and cutting down on red tape, as well as adopting a formal grievance policy through which employees could seek redress against their employers; however, the deposit required of workers was also increased, in an effort to address the high rate of contract termination by employees.