Taiwan has punished nine high-tech companies, including the local unit of Siemens, for violating regulations limiting staff working hours, an official and the media said Thursday. The decision came after labour authorities last year investigated labour practices at 30 firms following a much-publicised case of an engineer who allegedly worked himself to death.
Nine firms either received warnings or were fined up to Tw$60,000 ($2,000), depending on the extent of their violations, said an official at the Taipei City Labour Department, who declined to identify the firms. According to the United Evening News, the violators included the Taiwan unit of German engineering group Siemens and several leading local high-tech firms.
Overwork is believed to be prevalent in the high-tech industry, which is the main driving force for the island's economy, observers said. The government last year initiated the probe after a high-profile dispute that was sparked when a young engineer was reported to have collapsed and died as he tried to work his way through a mountain of paperwork at his desk.
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