Fundamental Arguments with 3 Netizens

   I am in the middle of three arguments on the internet, one defending a netizen friend offended by a truck driver with a confederate flag on the back of the pick-up. Another was an IM with a friend who defended a Clinton presidency over a Trump. The morning on-line started with a comment from a Facebook “friend” whose lint I picked up after joining a Facebook group; he didn’t like my blaming Middle World violence on US imperialistic designs

     To the netizen friend who was offended by seeing a confederate flag on the back of a passing pick-up truck, I said let the air out of his tires. Some troll called it ‘violent’. I then said move his windshield wipers and the fool accused me of editing my comment?!

I said, “Direct action gets satisfaction. Find out where he lives and let the air out of his tires. Letting air out of a tire, or a person with a weak argument, is not violence. Okay, maybe just lift his windshield wipers will send a message that he has to fear for the consequences of his actions. Racism is wrong and he doesn't have the right to promote it. Sure. Come out into the open where we can see you, but accept the consequences.     

He then chided me for what he thought was my modifying my comment. It was weird of him accusing me of "editing" my comments; I merely gave another non-violent tactic to respond to racism."Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," is my credo. I will be an activist against tolerance for racism long before I accept racism as a valid argument.

This person needed to be convinced that there is a war on racism and the racist enemy must become fearful of expressing his beliefs if finally he cannot be convinced. Sometimes only serendipitous clandestine action will help a racist see the light

My liberal friend from New York who thinks Clinton will be better than Trump was sent a meme by me attacking Obama’s record of promoting violence while president by saying Clinton was better than Trump. I tried convincing that there is no sitting down for freedom and democracy; Clinton is no alternative to Trump but Sanders, who is a coward, was.

His comment came in response to a meme I posted about an upcoming event celebrating the life of Ralph Nadar. Mark blamed Nadar on Bush's victory like Gore or Mondale would have done any worse. He doesn't realize what I realized about democracy under capitalism.

Sure, that's what the CIA wants you to think, but the buffoon would only draw American racism and white supremacy to a head; give the progressive movement a good target. Clinton will clandestinely lead the US further into war and depleted social programs, just as her husband did.

The CIA succeeded. Look what the progressive movement did with Nixon! We would have the country on the verge of revolution if Trump were president. "The darkest hour is just before the dawn." Bring the darkest hour on. Don't let the US linger in twilight too long while Americans and people of the world suffer.

I told my friend everyone who loves freedom and liberty must go out into the streets. I fear more for the clandestine policies Clinton will have on your and my children. They have to get out in the streets, too. I have no hope for the US until after the current regime is ousted.

      The “lint” from a group I joined was upset about my saying the U.S. caused the violence and threw me a red herring asking if I liked philosophy. Another friend defended me saying to ignore him but I challenged him to a debate about US causing Islam to circle the wagons against the assault to their culture and homeland. I wrote:

“The destruction of Islam is by Euro-American hands. Look back at Afghanistan, Iran & Libya before their Islamic Revolutions, all but 50 years ago. How things have changed! A people under attack in the Middle World circle the wagons and lose their ease. Westerners should put their energies into cleaning up their own backyard and stop their governments from terrorizing the Muslim world and provoking it.”

The first netizen who spoke his mind in a troll comment on-line threw me a red herring I challenged him to a debate about US causing Islam to circle the wagons against the assault to their culture and homeland. He asked, “Are you a fan of philosophical writing?” I replied, “I guess I am; I especially admire Kahlil Gibran; have you read his work? Your question has to do with the meme? I am curious.” He responded, “I have objections but all are category related, so I could easily convince you that I agreed or disagreed depending on how I responded to it”.

I responded, “Okay, you name the place and I will debate it with you.”

I am not afraid to confront people in person or on the internet; I only know when there's no more point in knowing someone and letting them live their private hells somewhere out of my sight. 

Pensioners should accept a reduction in handouts: NPP

GENEROUS SYSTEM:The nation’s pension system is a complicated web of different funds and guarantees, which have gradually accrued to workers in different sectors

By Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

Retired military personnel, civil servants and public-school teachers should accept benefit cuts for the sake of generational justice, New Power Party (NPP) legislators said yesterday, calling for an equal replacement ratio for national pensions.

“There will necessarily be pain and the sacrifice of some vested interests as part of pension reform, but the sacrifices are not for the benefit of any particular group — they are for our next generation and our nation’s future,” NPP Executive Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said, adding that excessively high income replacement ratios for former government employees were the primary source of “hidden debt” increasing the pressure on the budget.

The nation’s pension system is a complicated web of different funds and guarantees, which have gradually accrued to workers in different sectors with former government employees generally enjoying more generous coverage.

Chang said that former government employees with different pension systems receive pensions that are equal to between 70 and 100 percent of their former salaries, adding that “generational justice” requires that the government refuse assuming responsibility for meeting pension fund obligations after various funds go bankrupt.

“At a time when the nation’s finances face collapse unless reforms are enacted, talking about protecting vested interests is meaningless,” he said, “The government taking responsibility to meet the obligations would effectively shift the debts of this generation to the next.”

There is room for discussion on the precise legal definition of different government pension promises, along with the extent the promises could be constitutionally altered via legislation, he said.

In principle, any pension reform should adjust pension replacement ratios to make their underlying formulas equal across all sectors and occupations, he said, adding that his party would propose specific legislation after the Presidential Office’s pension reform commission makes its final recommendations next year.

Any pension reform plan should be equitable, guarantee a universal minimum pension and respect generational justice, while ensuring the system’s sustainability, NPP legislative caucus convener Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said.

He criticized a protest planned for tomorrow by retired government personnel for failing to outline a clear reform plan, accusing demonstrators of using the differences across occupations to obscure the importance of pension reform.

The NPP’s electoral platform last year called for canceling all non-pension benefits for government personnel while increasing their pension contributions and capping replacement ratios at between 60 and 70 percent.

The party also proposed transitioning to a “pay-as-you-go” pension system to replace the current pension system, which would serve as a “pool” for contributions from workers in different sectors.

Mixed views on ‘day off’ definition

By Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

A new Ministry of Labor interpretation of how to regulate workers’ “mandatory day off” drew mixed reaction from labor groups yesterday, with some saying the interpretation leaves a loophole for employers, while others called the issue inconsequential.

“The content is not substantially different from the previous interpretation,” Taipei Confederation of Trade Unions executive director Chen Shu-lun (陳淑綸) said. “The solution here should be firms paying and hiring more, rather than getting legal exceptions — the ministry’s decision will just lead to further demands from other industries to be included [in the exceptions].”

The new interpretation announced on Thursday is a more rigorous interpretation of the “seven days” during which an employee must take a “mandatory day off” under the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法). It includes a list of exceptions for specific kinds of work, such as meat processing and transportation during national holidays.

A more lenient interpretation of “seven days” applies to the exceptions, giving affected firms greater flexibility in scheduling shifts.

The ministry originally planned to apply the stricter interpretation across the board, but did a U-turn after bus companies announced massive cuts to their weekend and national holiday schedules.

Even though the scope of the new exceptions is more specific than the previous regulations, the ministry’s flip-flop raises questions about whether it will stand firm against calls to apply them to additional business sectors, Chen said, dismissing a statement by Deputy Minister of Labor Liao Hui-fang (廖蕙芳) that firms would only be allowed to make a “one-time” use of the exceptions.

“There’s no process to enforce the restrictions, except the requirement that employees give their consent,” Chen said.

“We are OK with anything that guarantees a definite amount of rest time under reasonable conditions,” National Drivers’ Union secretary-general Huang Shu-hui (黃淑惠) said, adding that the changes were “inconsequential” because either a flexible or rigid interpretation of “seven days” would be acceptable to union members.

General Chamber of Commerce chairman Lai Cheng-i (賴正鎰) said that because only “one-time” use of the exceptions is allowed, the regulations would not resolve the problems of some industries, such as security and travel firms.

Additional reporting by Huang Pang-ping and Lo Chien-yi

CIVIL PENSIONS: Young people’s groups voice their support for reform

By Cheng Hung-ta and Jason Pan  /  Staff reporters

Young people at a rally in Taipei yesterday call on students to demand pension reform, job equality and intergenerational justice.

Photo: CNA

Representatives from a coalition of young people’s groups voiced their support for pension reform in Taipei yesterday.

The group called for “generational justice” and equal treatment for people from all occupations, adding that young people are unfairly shouldering the financial burden of public pensions.

Jennifer Lu (呂欣潔), an executive for the Social Democratic Party, said that the viewpoints of the younger generation are not being heard at government meetings.

“I have many young adult friends around me who are civil servants, public-school teachers, or enlisted in the military, but they support the government’s drive for pension reform,” Lu said. “However, they are afraid to speak out due to pressure from their superiors.”

“Many young adults doubt that they can receive pensions in the future, even though they have paid into the system,” Lu said. “They worry that they have to pay now, but when they retire, they would have to face a bankrupt nation.”

Hsu Tzu-wei (徐子為), head of National Chengchi University’s graduate students association, said that public-school teachers receive on average NT$68,000 in monthly pensions, while workers in most other occupations only receive at most NT$16,000 per month.

“Our society has belatedly discovered that the pension system and working rights are unfair to private-sector employees,” Hsu said. “Pension reform is not a ‘class struggle’ against groups in higher wage levels. We just want to achieve reform so that private-sector employees have the same pensions as civil servants, teachers and military personnel.”

The government must be more prudent in its spending, he said, adding that it must find other revenue sources, so the pension system can be stabilized, easing the financial burden on young workers who have to support retirees.

Chen Chia-hsin (陳佳菁), president of the National Yang Ming University student union, said problems with the pension system have a historical and institutional background, and proposed reforms are not aimed at any particular group as some have claimed.

“Spending is allocated unevenly, for which the younger generation has to shoulder the financial burdens of the future,” Chen said. “We want the government to carry on dialogue with all sectors of society to make the pension system fair, equitable and sustainable.”

Wu Yun-ching (吳昀慶), head of National Taiwan University’s graduate students association, said statistics show that the nation’s “old-age dependency” ratio is at 5.6, meaning one person aged 65 or more is dependent on the financial contributions of 5.6 working adults.

“However, the ratio will be reduced to 2.2 within the next 20 years,” Wu said. “Taiwan will become an impoverished society. Therefore we must discuss the fair distribution of financial resources right now.”

Yao Chieh-hsiang (姚介祥), a figure in the Sunflower movement, said Taiwan risks bankruptcy, so Taiwanese should tighten their belts and face the hardship together.

“Those people protesting today [yesterday] ... should understand that they are also a part of this nation,” Yao said. “They should not see reform as a punishment.”

Tsai stresses commitment to reforms

RELENTLESS:President Tsai Ing-wen urged young people to be persistent when advocating a cause and ‘pound the table’ if officials keep ignoring their demands

By Chen Wei-han  /  Staff reporter

President Tsai Ing-wen, second row, sixth left, poses for a picture with the attendees at the Youth Policy Forum’s national conference at the Ministry of Education in Taipei yesterday.

Photo: CNA

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday reiterated her administration’s commitment to pension reform, saying that she will take full responsibility for its effects, following a protest on Saturday against the government’s planned reforms.

Tsai proposed four principles for reform: an across-the-board protection of retirement benefits; a scientific assessment of pension schemes; a sustainable and practical management of pension funds; and a democratic reform process.

Tsai made the remarks at a Youth Policy Forum conference hosted by the Ministry of Education in Taipei.

All retirees should be entitled to a sustainable pension that supports basic necessities, Tsai said, adding that changes to income replacement ratios, the government funding ratio of pension funds and payment requirements need to be based on rigorous calculations.

Management of pension funds has to be sustainable and pragmatic, she said, adding that improvements are needed to raise the funds’ performance and investment returns.

The reform process has to be democratic and transparent to make way for substantial discussions, Tsai said.

“The sole purpose of building a just and sustainable pension system is to take care of future generations. We will continue on the road to reform to ease the burden on the younger generation and ensure a stable retirement income,” Tsai said.

“As the president, I will take on the stress of reforms,” she added.

A determined government would not waver in its duty to carry out reforms even if opinion polls are not satisfactory, Tsai said, adding that structural reform is a long-term process in which there are no noticeable short-term results, but confusion and unrest.

A nation would fall if its government rules according to public sentiment, while a government would collapse if it only focuses on long-term goals, Tsai said, adding that her administration will try to “keep a better balance.”

She urged a crowd of about 100 attendants, mostly college students, to address issues such as pension reform, long-term care, industry innovation and constitutional reforms.

Tsai told them to be persistent when advocating a cause, because government officials need to be constantly reminded of the importance of certain issues.

“You might as well pound the table if [government officials] do not pay attention for a third time,” she said.

“However, there is no need to protest unless it is absolutely necessary. Protest is a right of every person, but it is more important to engage in reasonable discussion following a protest,” Tsai said.

Responding to a question on how the education system can be reformed to relieve high-school students from standardized tests, Tsai said high-school curriculum needs substantial reform to eliminate unnecessary studies so students can be engaged in life, as such engagement is lacking in the nation’s education system.

A three-year college degree program might be implemented to give students more time to be involved in non-academic work, she said.

Tsai encouraged young people to become entrepreneurs instead of confining themselves as employees, because industrial transition is key to building a better working environment at a time when numerous small and medium-sized enterprises are having difficulty keeping up with the competition and committing to worker welfare.

Premier Lin Chuan (林全) said the government respects Saturday’s protest and the opinions voiced there, but added that dialogue is needed to reach a consensus about pension reform.

Lin called on young people to engage in public issues and criticize government policies to boost communication between the public and the government.

Many couples live with parents: data

CITY LIFE:The ministry said married people in urban areas tend to value their independence and have less space, making it harder for joint families to live together

Staff writer, with CNA

About 21 percent of married Taiwanese aged 35 to 54 — more than 1.06 million people — live with their parents, even though they are financially independent, according to the Ministry of the Interior’s latest statistics.

The ministry released the data for the first time as a reference tool for local governments, to help them develop housing policies that better meet the needs of their constituents.

The ministry said people in this category “have the potential to live independently,” because they are financially independent from their parents and able to make a living and support a family.

The percentage of married people living with their parents tended to be higher in rural areas than in urban areas, the ministry said.

In the six special municipalities, 16 to 22 percent of married people aged 35 to 54 lived with their parents, compared with 26 to 33 percent in rural areas in central and southern Taiwan.

Fewer married people in urban areas live with their parents, because they tend to value their independence more, the ministry said.

They also have to deal with smaller apartments that make it harder for extended families to live together, it added.

Many houses in rural parts of central and southern Taiwan are multistory townhouses that can accommodate more people, it said.

Such structures allow married couples to live with their parents, but still enjoy a degree of independence by having one floor of the house to themselves, the ministry said.

Among the nation’s 22 cities and counties, Kinmen (33.79 percent), Yunlin (33.34 percent) and Chiayi (32.74 percent) counties had the highest ratios of potentially independent married people living with their parents, the ministry said.

Keelung (15.82 percent), Hsinchu (15.96 percent) and New Taipei City (16.71 percent) had the lowest ratios, it said.

In Yunlin and Chiayi — where agriculture is the main source of income — people tend to stay to help cultivate their family’s land, the ministry said, adding that it is also easier for married people to live with their parents to take care of them.

Many Keelung natives tend to move to bigger neighboring cities to find work and start their own families, the ministry said.

New Taipei City attracts many people from other parts of the nation to work and start families, also leading to a lower proportion of married people living with their parents, as does Hsinchu, home to one of the nation’s biggest science parks, the ministry said.

Tsai urges leaders to push ahead with reform agenda

Staff writer, with CNA

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Sunday held a meeting with top executive and legislative leaders and ruling party mayors of four municipalities, urging them to push ahead with the government’s major policy initiatives, including reform of the nation’s pension system.

The meeting came on the heels of a mass rally a day earlier of retired and active civil servants, public-school teachers and military personnel, who vented their anger at being “stigmatized” over their seemingly fat pensions.

Tsai asked Cabinet members, and legislative and local government leaders to help speed up the reform of the pension system as the public has high hopes of its success.

“We must make sure that our pension system is sustainable and that every member of the public can enjoy a quality retirement,” Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) quoted Tsai as saying.

Tsai urged the party caucus and the executive to help gather ideas and proposals for the presidential task force on pension reform so a consensus on the contentious issue could be reached as early as possbile, Huang said.

With a new session of the Legislative Yuan scheduled to begin soon, Tsai also called for progress on priority bills on social housing and long-term care for senior citizens.

The central government’s budget and the approval of the Judicial Yuan nominees for president and vice president, as well as nominees for grand justices, are also urgent business for the legislative branch, Tsai said.

“Our team must redouble its efforts to push ahead with major reform programs and the legislative agenda, making it known to the public what we are doing, the progress of our agenda and when it will be completed,” she said. “In short, we must do our best to communicate with all sectors of society to gain the people’s understanding and earn their trust.”

During the meeting, participants gave their full support and appreciation to the premier, vice premier and Cabinet chief secretary for their hard work over the past three months, Huang said.

Pensions must provide living expenses: SDP

INVERSE PYRAMID:Statistics show that the 260,000 retirees with benefits of more than NT$40,000 account for more than double the spending on any other bracket

By Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

Social Democratic Party policy committee convener Fan Yun, front second left, raises her fist together with fellow party members at a news conference on pension reform in Taipei yesterday.

Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times

National pension reform should consolidate different pension funds while guaranteeing minimum living expenses and putting a ceiling on payouts, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) said yesterday, announcing its pension reform plans as a national debate continues.

“It is time to stop the war of words, because we all have our ‘saliva’ on the subject. Anyone who is serious about supporting reform should put forth their plan,” SDP policy committee convener Fan Yun (范雲) said.

Fan criticized the organizers of Saturday’s protest by retired public-school teachers, civil servants and military personnel for stating that they support pension reform, while focusing on the “non-issue” of “dignity” instead of outlining specific proposals.

“The problem with pensions is that the difference across occupations is too huge, which is what creates hostility. Pension funds are going bankrupt because they are tied too closely to salaries rather than providing a minimum guarantee for retirees,” she said.

SDP convener Chen Shang-chih (陳尚志) said that national pension fund statistics show that spending is an inverse pyramid, with the 260,000 pensioners with monthly benefits of more than NT$40,000 accounting for more than double the spending on any other bracket, while 1.39 million retirees with benefits of less than NT$5,000 account for less than any other bracket.

“How can you expect someone to live on less than NT$10,000 [a month]?” Chen said, calling for a universal pension equal to basic living expenses to guarantee dignity for the elderly.

Based on 60 percent of average national spending per person, national basic living expenses are equal to about NT$12,000 a month, he said, adding that the government could provide all of the nation’s 3.3 million retirees with an NT$11,795 monthly pension if it were to allocate pension spending equally.

Fan added that the SDP’s plan would include a relative or absolute cap on benefits, citing both a possible 60 percent “replacement ratio” cap relative to salaries and an absolute cap equal to the average national wage.

“If you want to earn a larger pension, you can always invest in private insurance, but the government should not have to make that kind of guarantee,” Fan said, adding that the party’s plan would also eliminate the 18 percent interest rate accounts of former government employees.

Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁), who chairs the Pension Reform Commission which President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has charged with drafting new legislation, said last week that retired public-school and university teachers receive average monthly pensions of NT$68,025, retired civil servants receive NT$56,383 and military personnel receive NT$49,379.

In comparison, retired blue-collar workers (including most salaried private-sector workers) receive average monthly pensions of NT$16,179 from their Labor Insurance, while farmers receive an average of NT$17,223.

Those who receive a national pension, which serves as the de facto baseline pension for people such as the long-term unemployed who are excluded from other funds, receive an average of NT$3,628 a month.

Union demands more workers

TURNOVER:The union estimates that about 20 to 30 percent of new workers quit within six months due to schedules its members said were unreasonable

By Shelley Shan  /  Staff reporter

Taiwan Railway Union members perform a skit highlighting overwork caused by personnel shortages at the Taiwan Railways Administration during a protest outside the Ministry of Transportation and Communications in Taipei yesterday.

Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times

About 400 Taiwan Railway Union members yesterday afternoon demonstrated outside the Ministry of Transportation and Communications in Taipei to demand that the Taiwan Railways Administration address a personnel shortage.

The union also demanded that workers be given sufficient time off and additional overtime pay, saying that it has not ruled out going on strike during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday next week if the administration fails to respond positively in a week.

The union was formed last month, with most its members being younger employees at the administration.

Union chairman Wang Jieh (王傑) said these younger workers decided to speak up after seeing too many injustices carried out by the Taiwan Railway Labor Union — established years ago and consisting mostly of middle-aged and older employees — and the administration’s management, which resulted in a deterioration of their work environment and a number of accidents.

“We think that the administration’s problem is not only outdated facilities, but also a shortage of workers. The number of employees has dwindled from about 23,000 in 1971 to about 13,000,” Wang said. “Apart from retired workers, the agency cannot seem to keep its recruits.”

Wang said government promises to recruit more employees were lies, as positions have been filled with contractors and people serving alternative military service.

“What the public cannot imagine is our work schedule. Our shifts leave us working almost every day of the year, and we have to work 12 hours daily over two consecutive days before we can get one day off,” he said.

“While it looks like we can get 24 hours of rest, that break is from 12am until 7:30am the next day. In other words, we never get a complete rest day,” he said.

Train conductors, maintenance workers and electricians are underpaid when considering the number of hours and amount of work they do on the job, Wang said, adding that conductors do not receive subsidies for expenses when spending the night outside of their hometowns and that not all time spent at work is counted as work hours.

Maintenance workers and electricians never receive overtime pay equivalent to the number of hours they actually work, he said.

The protesters demanded that the administration recruit enough workers to address the personnel shortage within two years and allow for a full rest day for every two 12-hour work days, as well as an extra day off within a week.

They also asked that they be paid for working overtime in accordance with the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法).

Huang Kuo-hsun (黃國勛), a ticket sales clerk at Taipei Railway Station, told the Taipei Times the group estimates that about 20 percent to 30 percent of new employees quit within six months because of unreasonable work schedules.

An estimated 500 to 600 workers need to be hired so that the administration has enough employees for three shifts, he said.

In response to the demands, the administration formed an ad hoc task force to improve work schedules that is to meet on Saturday, saying that it hopes to hear the thoughts, observations and ideas from as many employees as possible.

The agency also set aside funds to remodel dorms used by workers who overnight outside of their hometowns for work.

CIVIL PENSIONS: Thousands gather to protest reform

KMT SAVIOR?A former civil servant said that the KMT needs to be involved because the government would leave no way to know what the final pension plan will look like

By Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

Protesters pack streets near the Presidential Office Building in Taipei yesterday in a rally organized by military personnel, civil servants and public-school teachers to show their dissatisfaction with the government and call for an end to “defamation” against them.

Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times

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Thousands of retired and active civil servants, public-school teachers and military personnel took to the streets in Taipei yesterday, demanding that the government abstain from targeting them in planned pension reforms.

In the first massive demonstration since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took office in May, protesters spilled from Ketagalan Boulevard onto Zhongshan S Road and several other roads blocks away, with the Taipei Police Department estimating that about 117,000 attended, while organizers claimed there were more than 250,000 participants.

The size of the crowd was swelled by an official mobilization by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), with KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) pledging to “stand with” the protesters.

While Hung did not take to the stage, she greeted the leaders of one line of former military personnel with flowers and flags, with participants having photographs taken with her.

The KMT also set up several “gas stations” — a play on the Mandarin phrase “add oil,” an expression of encouragement — along march routes, handing out water and Republic of China (ROC) flags.

“Reform absolutely should not be carried out by putting labels on people or pitting generations against each other,” she said, adding that her party had pushed for pension reforms under former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) while the DPP had stalled the efforts in the legislature.

Former premier Hau Pei-tsun (郝柏村) marched in his capacity as a former army general, while several KMT legislators and city councilors also took part.

The demonstration began yesterday afternoon with retired military personnel gathering outside Daan Forest Park (大安森林公園) and National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall before marching to the rally site on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office Building, walking in formation, waving large ROC flags and singing military anthems.

Retired civil servants, police officers and firefighters gathered at the 228 Peace Memorial Park before walking to Ketagalan Boulevard, while retired public-school teachers converged at National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall’s Liberty Square.

Protesters shouted slogans opposing “stigmatization” and demanding “dignity,” with the Alliance for Monitoring Pension Reform — which organized the march — calling for fiscal reforms and fund management improvements to offset some of the need for cuts, while also demanding that any changes to benefits and contribution formulas not be applied retroactively.

Tsai has asked the Presidential Office’s National Pension Reform Committee to draft a consensus pension reform plan, with Minister Without Portfolio Lin Wan-i (林萬億), the deputy convener and executive director of the committee, pledging to resign if a plan is not drafted and submitted to the Legislative Yuan by May next year.

Some protesters expressed distrust of Tsai’s push for reforms.

“We are afraid of pension reform, because the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is now in full control,” said a woman surnamed Chan (詹), who said she is a former civil servant living in Taichung. “Without the KMT’s participation, there is no way to know what the final plan will look like beforehand. Waiting until a plan is announced would be too late. We have to step forward now before anything is finalized.”

Chan said that the government’s focus on discussions over relative “replacement ratios” between salaries and pensions for public and private-sector employees was unreasonable because of the different nature of the systems.

“We had to go through testing before being hired and that door is always open,” she said. “So if you think we have better treatment, you can always take the test yourself.”

“We feel that fiscal reform should be comprehensive and not just targeted at us,” said Kuo Wen-ching (郭文進), a retired soldier, who called for the government to raise taxes on corporations instead of trying to “hunt down” former government employees.

He also rejected remarks by Tsai on Friday that former military personnel had “special circumstances” that warranted their being treated differently as part of pension reform, accusing her of trying to divide former government employees while remaining “coy” about the nature of cuts.

According to the committee, there are 13 pension programs in effect in Taiwan.

The average monthly pension is NT$49,379 for military personnel, NT$56,383 for civil servants, NT$68,025 for public-school teachers, NT$17,223 for private-school teachers, NT$16,179 for employees covered by labor insurance, NT$7,256 for farmers and NT$3,628 for workers covered by general public insurance, it said.

Low contributions coupled with the nation’s aging population have put most of the funds on course for bankruptcy within two decades, with Minister of Civil Service Chou Hung-hsien (周弘憲) last week saying that pension contributions by civil servants, military personnel and teachers would have to be tripled for the funds to be sustainable over the next 50 years at current payment levels.

At a news conference at the Executive Yuan later yesterday, Lin said the committee would convene pension reforms meetings next month and in November across the nation before a national conference in January or February next year.

Additional reporting by CNA

Call for higher minimum wage

DIRECT ACTION:If the government is serious about addressing youth poverty, raising the minimum wage would be the most effective method, a labor rights advocate said

By Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

The minimum wage should be increased to more than NT$26,000 per month, labor activists said yesterday, amid doubts about industry representative threats to boycott a meeting of the Ministry of Labor’s minimum wage review committee scheduled for today.

“The minimum wage has to fulfill the basic function of allowing a worker and his family to maintain a basic standard of living,” Taiwan Labor Front (TLF) executive secretary Yang Shu-wei (楊書瑋) said at a news conference held at the group’s offices, adding that the wage should be the product of national individual living expenses multiplied by the national dependency ration.

Such a formula would yield a monthly minimum salary of NT$26,300, he said, calling for the passage of a minimum wage act to codify the formula and put an end to the current “haggling” between labor and industry representatives.

The current minimum monthly salary is NT$20,008.

“Raising the minimum wage lifts irregular incomes as well as regular incomes, so it drives increases in overall earnings. If President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is serious about addressing youth poverty, raising the minimum wage is the most direct and effective method,” said Hung Ching-shu (洪敬舒), director of the TLF’s Research Center for the Working Poor.

He added that wage increases do not necessary lead to an increase in unemployment, citing unemployment figures for recent years, which he said have stayed largely stable despite small increases.

Taiwan Labor Front secretary-general Son Yu-liam (孫友聯) said wage increases could also help the economy by raising consumption.

Several Social Democratic Party (SDP) members held a simultaneous protest outside the Ministry of Labor advocating similar increases, shouting that workers should be allowed to review and pass new minimum wage increases themselves, even if vested interests choose to boycott today’s review committee meeting, which they had threatened to do.

Major industry associations have said they would boycott the meeting to protest the government’s failure to remove national holidays as part of its implementation of the five-day workweek, despite some representatives meeting with Vice Premier Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀) yesterday.

“He only came to listen our views, but we made them clear long before and there is really no need to keep repeating ourselves,” Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (CNAIC) chairman Lin Por-fong (林伯豐) said, adding that leaders of seven major trade associations would “in principle” not participate in today’s meeting.

Industry leaders previously boycotted the committee’s July meeting, leading to a decision on raising the minimum wage to be postponed until today.

Deputy Minister of Labor Liau Huei-fang (廖蕙芳) said at the time that a decision would be made at today’s meeting regardless of whether business leaders attended.

Lin Por-fong yesterday said that business leaders could accept a minimum wage increase of up to 3 percent, adding that a hike to more than NT$26,000 would merely lead to massive unemployment for marginal workers, who would stand to lose their jobs to college graduates with higher earning capabilities.

“The government will be left in a tight place if does not make any adjustments, but an overly large hike would not be good for the economy,” he said.

Additional reporting by CNA