Taipei, July 3, 2009 (CENS)--Influenced by the global downturn, Taiwan`s labor shortage totaled 115,000 persons with the rate dropping to below 2% for the first time at 1.8% in February of this year, both the lowest of their kinds, according to the survey by the Cabinet-level Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

DGBAS officials indicated that the labor shortage rate rises amid buoyant business climate, and vice versa for the unemployment rate, with the two rates usually moving like a seesaw. In the 1980s of the Taiwan economic boom, when economic growth ranged 8%-12%, the labor shortage rate ranged 6%-9% while the jobless rate was below 2%.

With the introduction of foreign labor, the labor shortage rate gradually declined yearly to below 4% in 1994, then to below 3% in 2002 due to the island`s weak economy, with the unemployment rate rising to over 5%.

In February of this year the labor shortage rate fell below 2% while the unemployment rate rose to nearly 6%.

In the same month, the labor shortage rate in the industrial sector dipped to 2% from last year`s 3.07%, and that in the service sector shrank to 1.63% from 2.36%. During the month, the manufacturing industry had a labor shortage of 51,000 persons, with electronics, metal products, computer & related sectors each needing over 5,000 workers. The service industry had a shortage of 56,000 persons, with retailing, financial and insurance each needing more than 10,000 workers. The real estate industry showed the highest labor shortage rate of 4.06% for the month.


(by Judy Li)