Officials say health of foreign workers deteriorating

This article was published by the Taiwan Headlines on June 7, 2006. It reports that according to the Taipei City Department of Labor, the health of foreign workers in Taiwan is deteriorating. The number of foreign workers who seek psychological counseling is also on the rise.

According to the Taipei City's Foreign Labor Service Center, so far in 2006, approximately 32 percent of the foreign workers in the city have sought psychological or counseling services. The figure is a sharp rise from that of 7 percent in 2004. Meanwhile, more foreign workers are complaining of chest pains, dizziness, high blood pressure, chronic fatigue, and deteriorating vision.

According to the Foreign Labor Service Center, the majority of the foreign workers in Taipei City work as care givers for the elderly or small children. Many of these workers work long hours and have very little time for a social life. Worse, many foreign workers are exploited in terms of working conditions. For example, some workers are forced to work overtime and only allowed one day off per month.

According to the Foreign Labor Service Center's on-job satisfaction index, an overwhelming number of foreign workers in Taipei City said that they are unhappy with their jobs and that their health has been adversely affected as a result.

A local newspaper recently reported that less than 20 percent of foreign workers in Taiwan go to the doctors when they have health problems. More significantly, more than 50 percent of these workers choose to take over-the-counter medication to solve their physical discomforts. Some of these workers even refuse to purchase any medication in Taiwan, and instead only use the drugs they brought over from their home countries.

According a recent survey, many foreign workers who refuse to go to the doctors in Taiwan say that they cannot afford the NT$150 co-payment. Indeed, in many Southeast Asian countries, the amount is equal to a full day of salary. Meanwhile, language barriers and unfamiliarity with Taiwanese hospital procedures also deter these foreign workers from seeking medical attention in Taiwan.