How greedy brokers force thousands of Vietnamese workers to seek illegal work in Taiwan
- Thousands of Vietnamese migrant workers are being lured to Taiwan by unscrupulous brokers peddling false promises of high wages and good living conditions.
- Many go missing, preferring a life in the shadows to one in bondage
She left behind her two sons and husband, a farmer nearly blind in one eye, because the broker told her that with overtime she could earn US$1,000 per month.
But no one told her about all the fees, taxes and living costs she would face; that she would be doing night shifts from 5pm to 8am the next day; and that errors due to fatigue would be taken out of her pay. Her actual monthly earnings were just US$500.
When her employer threatened to lay off 45 Vietnamese workers who had protested against the illegal bond imposed on them to stop them running away, 20 were defiant and ran off anyway to seek illegal work. Mai was among them.
“I couldn’t go home. I was already over 30 years old then, it would be difficult for me to come back,” she said. “I had to run away, at least I’d have the chance to earn some money.”