Taiwan plans to add 20,000 migrant workers to agriculture sector
台灣計畫農業部門再增2萬名外籍勞工
| TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of Agriculture said it plans to add 20,000 migrant workers in phases to support agricultural work, part of efforts to address a shortage of 60,000 workers in the sector.
The Ministry of Labor on Wednesday held a meeting to assess the feasibility of expanding migrant worker numbers. The agriculture sector had 12,000 migrant workers in 2023, with 8,000 added in 2024, per CNA. Su Yu-kuo (蘇裕國), an official in the labor ministry’s migrant worker management division, said the meeting agreed to initially bring in 7,000 migrant workers. He emphasized that further increases would depend on improvements in runaway worker cases. According to the National Immigration Agency, Taiwan has about 820,000 migrant workers, with more than 90,000 missing. Su said about 9% of migrant workers in the agriculture sector have run away, compared with 3% of all migrant workers, highlighting the need to address the issue in the sector. The agriculture ministry said it has implemented measures to help migrant workers adapt to their work environments, including strengthening legal guidance, improving management of recruitment agencies, and promoting employers’ understanding of labor laws. The meeting concluded that the ministry should help resolve labor disputes, curb runaway migrant workers, and ensure employers hire workers legally. It also decided that the number of runaway workers in the sector must fall below 8% before an additional 7,000 migrant workers are brought in. Migrant workers in Taiwan’s agriculture sector primarily handle crop planting and livestock feeding. The ministry said farms with more than 150 beehives or over one hectare of farmland will also be eligible to apply for migrant workers. Su added that the labor ministry will hold a meeting to discuss a proposal from the Fisheries Agency to allow migrant workers in ocean fishing. The ministry will also review a proposal from the economic ministry to let them assist in fireworks production. |
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| Carol Yang Taiwan News, Staff Writer | |
| 2026-03-26 |
