The Labor Ministry says that if city or county governments announce a suspension of work due to extreme temperatures, employers cannot mark employees as absent or deduct their full attendance bonus.
The announcement comes amidst a cold wave affecting Taiwan since late Monday, causing snowfall and icy roads in some areas, leading to announcements of suspension of work and classes on Tuesday due to safety concerns.
During an interview on Tuesday, the Labor Ministry explained that according to regulations for work and school suspensions, extremely low temperatures fall under the natural disasters category. Low temperatures may cause disruptions to transportation, water, and electricity supply and may affect the safety of the public.
Labor Standards Director Huang Wei-chen (黃維琛) said that if employees have difficulty going to work due to natural disasters or if there are concerns about danger then employees can tell their employers that they will not be reporting for work. Employers cannot make excessive demands such as requiring employees to take leave for the day or marking them as absent and thus withholding perfect attendance bonuses.
Huang says that employees can also apply for family care leave if they need to take care of their children. Employees are allowed family leave of seven days a year without pay and companies that do not provide this benefit can be fined up to NT300,000 (US$9568) per year.