TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – As a result of new rules forcing workers to take one day off for each six days of work, bus companies said Friday they would have to reduce services from August and would be unable to mobilize extra buses during the Mid-Autumn and Double Ten holidays.
The administration of President Tsai Ing-wen and Premier Lin Chuan has pushed for more labor rights, including a different calculation of days off. The “six days work, one day off” rule will come into practice on August 1.
Operators of short- and long-distance bus services announced Friday that the new measure would lead them to enforce legally allowed service cuts from next month, while operating extra services during the September 15-18 Mid-Autumn Festival and the October 8-10 Double Ten National Day holiday.
For short-distance city buses, the frequency of the services might have to be cut from one bus per five minutes to one per ten minutes, operators said.
According to an association of transportation companies, there was a shortage of 1,500 to 1,700 bus drivers, which would be impossible to recruit. The operators said they were caught between the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC), which required them to operate extra services to meet holiday demand, and the Ministry of Labor, which forbade them from implementing flexible leave schedules.
The MOTC earlier warned bus companies that they might face fines of up to NT$90,000 (US$2,800) if they cut services illegally.