TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — KMT lawmakers on Thursday proposed legislation to reform the government’s public-sector salary adjustment mechanism.
KMT Legislator Weng Hsiao-ling (翁曉玲) said the bill would link pay increases to inflation, per Tai Sounds. Under the proposal, a salary adjustment would be triggered if the consumer price index rises by 3%, while a review would also be required at least once every four years.
Any pay increase approved through the review process could not be less than half the inflation rate recorded during the period.
KMT Legislator Hsu Yu-chen (許宇甄) said inadequate salary increases have contributed to recruitment and retention challenges within Taiwan’s civil service. Weng also proposed adding civil servant representatives and outside experts to Cabinet meetings that determine public-sector pay adjustments, per Liberty Times.
The Cabinet responded to the proposal Thursday. Cabinet Spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said the government would evaluate the possibility of future pay increases through existing mechanisms, citing Taiwan’s economic performance and continued growth in the minimum wage, per CNA.
Chen Su-chih (陳素枝), head of the Cabinet’s Department of Remuneration and Benefits, said the government already consults civil servant and teachers’ organizations before salary adjustment meetings, per ETtoday. However, she added that the Cabinet plans to include civil servant representatives and outside experts in pay adjustment meetings as part of proposed reforms to the public-sector pay adjustment system.
DPP Legislative Caucus Secretary-General Chuang Jui-hsiung (莊瑞雄) also voiced support for the proposal, arguing that allowing those directly affected by pay decisions to participate in the process would improve the credibility of the government’s adjustments, per Newtalk. He described that aspect of the proposed amendment as “very reasonable.”
Separately, the National Federation of Teachers Unions and the Coalition of Taiwan Civil Service Reform Drivers recently clashed with Minister of Civil Service Shih Neng-chieh (施能傑) over public-sector pay increases, per Storm Media. The teachers’ federation has called for a raise of more than 10%, while the coalition has proposed incorporating base pay into future adjustment calculations and sought an overall increase of at least 6.76%.
Shih opposed the coalition’s proposal, arguing that increasing base pay would undermine the principle of differentiating compensation according to job responsibilities and position. He noted that although concerns are often raised about how closely the salaries of Elementary Grade 1 and 2 civil servants track the minimum wage, employees in those grades account for less than 2% of the civil service.
The coalition rejected that argument, saying the administrative and legal responsibilities borne by lower-ranking civil servants do not diminish because of their position within the bureaucracy. It said the proposal is intended to reduce the impact of inflation on lower-paid workers.
The coalition also argued that chronic understaffing across government agencies has blurred the distinction between job grades and actual responsibilities. It said civil service rank should not matter only when pay is discussed.
