Article Content

Title:
Gender Equality in Employment Act ( 2023.08.16 Modified )Ch

  Chapter Ⅰ General Provisions

Article 1
The Act is enacted to protect gender equality in the workplace, implement thoroughly the constitutional mandate of eliminating gender discrimination, and promote the spirit of substantial gender equality.
Incidents of workplace sexual harassment, except for campus sexual harassment cases regulated by the Gender Equity Education Act, shall be handled in accordance with the provisions of the Act.
Article 2
Arrangements made by employers and employees that are superior to those provided for by the Act shall be respected.
The Act is applicable to civil servants, educational personnel and military personnel, provided that. However, the provisions of Article 32-1, Article 32-2, Article 33, Article 34, Article 38, and Article 38-1 shall not apply.
Complaints, remedies and processing procedures for civil servants, educational personnel and military personnel shall be handled in accordance with respective statutes and regulations governing personnel matters.
The Act is applicable to those trainee-apprentices who are recruited by employers in accordance with the Labor Standard Act and those who are applicable to, mutatis mutandis, the trainee-apprentice provisions of that Act, except for those trainee-students who are protected by the related provisions in the Act of Implementing Cooperation Programs for Training and Education and Protecting Rights and Interests of the Trainee-Students in the Senior High Schools, provided that, Articles 16-17 of the Act shall not be applicable.
For those trainees who are sexually harassed during the duration of their training, the related provisions of the Act shall be applicable.
Article 3
The terms used in the Act shall be defined as follows:
1. Employee means a person who is hired by an employer to work for wages.
2. Applicant means a person who is applying a job from an employer.
3. Employer means a person, a public or private entity or authority that hires an employee. A person who represents an employer to exercise managerial authority or who represents an employer in dealing with employee matters is deemed to be an employer. Dispatched entities utilizing dispatched workers are deemed as employers as provided in Articles 8, 9, 12, 13, 18, 19 and 36 of the Act.
4. Trainee means a student of a public or registered private senior high school or above who is participating in an extracurricular training program.
5. Dispatched entity means a unit that is actually ordering and supervising a dispatched workers doing the work in accordance with a dispatching contract.
6. Dispatched worker means a worker who is employed by a dispatching entity and actually works for the dispatched entity.
7. Dispatching entity means a business entity that engages in labor dispatching business.
8. Wage means the compensation which an employee receives for his/her services rendered, including wages, salaries and bonuses, allowances, and other regular payments regardless of the name which may be computed on an hourly, daily, monthly or piecework basis, whether payable in cash or in kind.
9. Reinstatement means reinstate to the previous job held by the employee who has applied for and used the unpaid parental leave referred to in the Act.
Article 4
The term “competent authority” referred to in the Act shall be the Ministry of Labor at the central level, the municipal government at the municipal level, and the county (city) government at the county (city) level.
Matters stipulated in the Act which are concerned with the competences of the competent authorities for other purposes shall be handled by those authorities for other purposes
Article 5
Competent authorities at all levels shall establish Gender Equality in Employment Committees to handle deliberation, consultation, and promotion of gender equality in employment matters.
The Gender Equality in Employment Committee mentioned in the preceding Paragraph shall consist of five to eleven members with a term of two years, appointed from individuals possessing relevant knowledge and expertise in labor affairs, gender issues, or legal professionals. Among these members, two shall be recommended by labor organizations, and two by gender organizations. The number of female members shall account for more than half of the total committee members, and government agency representatives shall not exceed one-third of the total committee members.
The organization, meetings, and other related matters of the Gender Equality in Employment Committee as mentioned in the previous two Paragraphs shall be determined separately by competent authorities at various levels.
If local government agencies have established Employment Discrimination Review Committees, the Gender Equality in Employment Committee mentioned in Paragraph 1 may be combined with such committee, while still adhering to the composition requirements specified in Paragraph 2.
Article 6
For the purpose of promoting gender equality in employment, the competent authorities at the municipal, country (city) government level shall prepare and earmark necessary budgets to provide various occupational training, employment service and reemployment training programs for them. During these training and service periods, child care, elder care and other related welfare facilities shall be set up or provided for female employment.
The Central Competent Authority may subsidize the expenses for those competent authorities at the municipal, country (city) government level that have provided occupational training, employment service and reemployment training programs, and set up or provide child care, elder care and other related welfare facilities during those training and service periods mentioned in the preceding paragraph.
Article 6-1
The scope of labor inspection of the competent authorities shall include the items for prohibition of gender or sexual orientation discrimination, prevention and correction of sexual harassment, measures for promoting equality in employment of the Act.