TAIWAN Law and Practice Contributed by: Chengkai Wang, Yachi Huang, Herman Lin and Tzutien Huang, Dentons Taiwan (Dacheng Taiwan)
Alternative Dispute Resolution for Employment Matters The Department of Labor plays a crucial role in medi - ating employment disputes before they escalate to formal litigation; how this process works is detailed in the following. • Initial mediation by the Department of Labor: (a) the Department conducts a basic investigation of the evidence provided by both parties; (b) mediation is facilitated by a single mediator and is free of charge; and (c) the process typically lasts up to 20 days but, if referred to a mediation committee, can extend from 42 to 49 days. • Court mediation and litigation: (a) if mediation through the Department of Labor fails, the aggrieved party may file a lawsuit at the District Court; (b) before the trial commences, the judge will at - tempt a mediation period; (c) under the Labor Incident Act, mediation is mandated before trial, and one of the three labour mediation committee members will be a judge who may later oversee the trial if media - tion fails; (d) court-mandated mediation may incur a fee de - pending on the nature of the claim (proprietary or non-proprietary); and (e) according to the Labor Incident Act, court- mandated mediation should conclude within three months; if the case proceeds to trial, the first instance trial should be concluded within six months. Class Action Claims In the realm of employment law, class or collective actions are permitted, primarily facilitated through labour unions. Key points include the following. • Legal framework: (a) labour unions can initiate class action lawsuits on behalf of employees, as permitted by Article 44-1 of the Civil Procedure Act and Article 40 of the Labor Incident Act; and (b) these provisions allow labour unions to rep - resent their members collectively, providing a unified legal front in disputes affecting multiple
This means the employee must initially show plausible evidence of discrimination, after which the employer must demonstrate that their actions were not discrimi - natory. Damages and Relief for Discrimination Claims If an employer is found to have discriminated against an employee, they may face fines ranging from NTD300,000 to NTD1.5 million. Employees can file complaints with local government offices or labour bureaus. Furthermore, any retaliatory actions by the employer, such as dismissal or salary reduction in response to complaints, are deemed invalid under the In Taiwan, the process for handling employment dis - putes remains primarily traditional, with physical court appearances being required. Despite the increasing global trend towards digitalisation in judicial process - es, Taiwan’s legislation currently does not support conducting employment dispute hearings via vide - oconferencing as a standard practice. Exceptions can be made, however, if a judge or mediation committee specifically agrees to allow videoconferencing based on the unique circumstances of a case. Labor Standards Act. 8.3 Digitalisation This approach reflects a cautious stance towards the digitalisation of court proceedings, particularly in employment disputes where personal interactions and direct negotiations can be crucial. As digital tools and platforms become more integrated into various legal processes globally, there may be future revisions in Taiwan to this policy to allow greater flexibility and accessibility in handling employment disputes digi - tally.
9. Dispute Resolution 9.1 Litigation Specialised Employment Forums
Taiwan has established specialised procedures for handling employment disputes, including alterna - tive dispute resolution mechanisms and designated courts.
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