Taiwan confronts the cost of migrant care
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In Taiwan, over 200,000 migrant care workers fill a gap in long-term care for nearly 1 million people, despite lacking the labor protections afforded to domestic workers.
The increasing wages in care workers’ home countries, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, combined with competition from Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong, threaten the future supply of these workers.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Labor launched a pilot program last year that hires care workers covered by the Labor Standards Act, offering training and shift-based work, but the program currently serves a very limited number of people. To address the issue, experts suggest incorporating care services into existing long-term care benefits, easing the financial burden on families and improving worker conditions. Currently, the long-term care budget exceeds NT$100 billion, yet access to benefits remains low for those with severe disabilities.
Taiwan should also create career pathways for migrant workers, allowing them to gain qualifications for institutional care, supervisory roles, and long-term residency, unlike the current system that replaces workers when their permits expire. Finally, the country should offer varied care options, with institutional staffing agencies providing services for those with mild to moderate needs, while maintaining one-on-one care for those with severe disabilities, supported by long-term care benefits and mandatory respite care.
The article argues that ignoring the true cost of care shifts the burden onto disabled people, families, and the migrant workers themselves, and that the government must address this long-standing issue.
