The Taiwanese government is considering the introduction of paid mental health leave for public-sector workers. Under the proposal, employees would be entitled to three days of paid leave per year, which would be part of the seven days of guaranteed personal leave.
Director-General of the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration, Su Chun-jung, presented the proposal to the legislature’s Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee on Tuesday. He explained that the initiative aims to strengthen the mental resilience of public servants, in line with the broader focus on mental health by the Presidential Office’s Healthy Taiwan Promotion Committee.
Su clarified that the proposed mental health leave would be paid and would not impact workers’ performance evaluations. Additionally, employees would not be required to provide proof of their mental health needs, and work units would be prohibited from refusing such leave requests or imposing any punitive measures.
In his remarks, Su also addressed the ongoing discussion about national holidays, stating that while he was not opposed to making Labor Day a national holiday, his agency would defer to the Ministry of the Interior’s review of the proposal to declare May 1 as a state holiday. Su expressed reservations about a proposal to reinstate seven national holidays removed in 2016, highlighting concerns about the potential disruption to education in rural areas.
In a separate matter, the Examination Yuan revealed a concerning decline in the number of people sitting for the civil service exams. The number of exam takers dropped dramatically by 86 percent, from 34,000 in 2012 to just 4,994 in 2023.
To address this, the Examination Yuan has launched a four-year initiative to attract more talent to the public sector. Secretary-General Jason Liu outlined several measures, including fostering collaboration across branches, improving national exam regulations and personnel management, and transitioning to a digital-based system. Liu emphasized the importance of enhancing administrative staff training and creating a more welcoming work environment at both local and central government levels.
Minister of Examination Lio Mon-chi further stated that the ministry plans to amend regulations to make the exam system more flexible. The government is also working on updating its exam question archives more frequently and employing artificial intelligence, big data, and cloud technologies to enhance public sector services and attract more workers to government positions.
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