The number of workers on formal furlough programs in Taiwan dropped slightly to below 13,000, but mainly because certain business sectors are still in the process of reporting their furloughed worker data, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) said Tuesday.
Data compiled by the MOL showed that the number of workers who agreed to take unpaid leave fell to 12,659 during the past week as of Feb. 7, down by 344 from the previous report released on Jan. 24.
Meanwhile, the number of companies with furlough programs in place also fell by 113 from a week earlier to 2,019.
Although the latest figure showed a slight decline, that is mainly because travel agencies and companies in the transportation and warehousing industry are still in the process of reporting their furloughed worker data, Huang Wei-chen (???), director of the MOL's Department of Labor Standards and Equal Employment, told reporters.
Huang anticipates a rise in the number of furloughed workers in Taiwan when figures reported by these business sectors are included in the next furlough report.
According to MOL data, the number of workers taking unpaid leave during the period primarily included the support service industry, at 8,226, followed by the manufacturing industry with 969 people.
Meanwhile, 790 employees in the transportation and warehousing industry took unpaid leave, the data showed.
The number of workers on furloughed programs in Taiwan has hovered around 10,000 in recent weeks, indicating a stable trend, he said, while adding that the country's strict border controls imposed to keep COVID-19 out of the country continue to have an impact.
The retail and wholesale sector, which includes shops catering to tourists, have been the most severely impacted by the border controls, the official explained.
Border controls hurt not only travel agents and the transportation and warehousing industry, but also the retail and wholesale sector which includes businesses that cater to tourists, Huang added.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel