TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Workers with disabilities in Hualien have brought their factory back online following the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that rocked Taiwan on April 3.
Hualien’s New Dawn Sheltered Workshop (黎明庇護工場) was slightly damaged by the earthquake though the labor ministry said Thursday (April 18) the building is safe and back to full production. The workshop is one of 165 sheltered workshops throughout Taiwan set up in collaboration with the labor ministry to provide employment opportunities for physically and mentally disabled people.
Deputy director of the workshop Chung Ching-ting (鍾京廷) told Taiwan News that because staff conduct regular disaster response drills, employees responded well to the earthquake. He said that despite aftershocks, workers have remained calm and attentive to their work preparing cakes that will be sold for Mother's Day and zongzi for the Dragon Boat Festival.
More than 30 staff with disabilities are employed at the factory, producing handmade biscuits, cakes, and other snacks that have won local food production awards. Chung said the sheltered workshop is the only one of its kind in Hualien, and without it, people with disabilities would lack options for training.
“The workshop provides disabled people with skills for being economically independent, with the goals of ‘self-reliance and supporting others’,” he said.
Chung said the factory’s revenue took a hit during the pandemic, but said this recovered as tourists returned. The earthquake dealt another blow to the factory, and Chung said that by buying its products, the public can support the reconstruction of Hualien.
A spokesperson for the ministry’s development bureau told Taiwan News the sheltered workshop scheme began in 2003, and there were 2,177 people with disabilities employed in Taiwan’s 165 sheltered workshops in 2023.
Disabled employees in the sheltered workshops are exempt from minimum wage laws. They are paid according to agreements between the employer and employee that are subject to review by the labor ministry.
The approach is sometimes controversial, as opponents say that it is discriminatory to exempt disabled people from minimum wage requirements. However, proponents say those employed would not have the opportunity to work otherwise, and that employment provides individuals with purpose and a sense of fulfillment.
