RAILWAY UNION ASKS PRESIDENT TO MAKE TRA NEGOTIATE|抗議春節休假遭懲處 台鐵工會籲總統促協商

About 200 members of the Taiwan Railway Union protested in front of the Ministry of Transportation, then took their demonstration to the front of the Presidential Building. Physical altercation with the police ensued. Union members called on President Tsai Ing-wen to direct the Taiwan Railways Administration to begin negotiations with the union, in addition to changing work scheduling practices and revoking all penalties to members who participated in their industrial action over the Lunar New Year. Over 100 members of the Taiwan Railway union were charged with being absent without leave after taking part in an industrial action over the Lunar New Year. Union members protested in front of the Ministry of Transportation, and then the Presidential Office, on the afternoon of the 9th. Physical altercations with the police ensued. ==POLICE== Please do not push police officers. Please do not push police officers. The union slammed the TRA for failing to maintain adequate staffing levels and forcing employees into overloaded work schedules with no vacation, violating the law and endangering employee health. ==WANG CHIEH Taiwan Railway Union Chair== We've worked these terrible shifts for so many years, sacrificing our quality of life. We've been warning that we will take this legally allowed holiday since last fall, but has the TRA tried negotiating with us? No, they haven't. Protesters say that, after working so hard to enter the TRA, their schedules are even worse than factory workers. ==WANG HUI-HSUAN TRA Hsinchu Station Agent== To put it simply, we have to work alternate day-night shifts, one day shift followed by one night shift. And no one ever gets to take leave, because everyone needs a break but there just isn't enough headcount. ==KUAN YUNG-MING Dep. Station Master, TRA Longtian Station== We have trains during the daytime and evenings. There are no passenger trains during late night, but there are still maintenance trains, and technicians doing maintenance work. We deputy station masters need to be there late at night to monitor their work. The government has responded that employees who had submitted leave requests before taking Lunar New Year off may have their absentee demerits revoked, and that 300 new employees will be hired. The union says that this is an insincere response. They say that they are entitled to refuse to work during national holidays, and that all absentee demerits should be revoked, regardless of whether leave requests were submitted. TRANSLATED BY：JOHN CHEN 不滿春節期間發起依法休假，卻有上百人被處分曠職，台鐵產業工會上百位員工、下午先到交通部抗議，接著轉往凱道，在總統府前演出拍桌行動劇，還一度與警方發生推擠。 ==警察== 請不要推擠警方 請不要推擠警方 工會痛批，台鐵長期放任人力不足，近30年來逼迫現職員工、輪值全年無休、日夜休的超時過勞班表，不只違法，更嚴重危害到員工的健康與生活。 ==台鐵產業工會理事長 王傑== 我們長年以來輪班 犧牲的就是我們所有的生活品質 結果我們從去年中秋 喊出依法休假 一直到了現在 鐵路局跟我們協商了什麼 什麼都沒有 參與遊行的台鐵員工說，辛苦考進台鐵，輪班制度卻比作業員還不如。 ==台鐵新竹站員工 王蕙萱== 簡單來跟大眾解釋就是 日班大夜班 日班大夜班 日班大夜班 然後請假永遠請不到 因為就是大家都要休息 我們的人力又不足 ==台鐵隆田站副站長 官永銘== 白天有列車晚上也有列車 半夜的話雖然沒有列車 可是半夜的話是輪到工程列車 工程人員還有一些技術人員 他們會出來維修 以我們副站長來說的話 他們維修的時候 我們就是要現場監督 對於官方回應，有提假單未過曠職、可以從寬處理，以及再增補300人力，工會表示政府仍毫無誠意，工會強調、國定假日拒絕出勤，為什麼要丟假單，要的話就應該撤銷全部曠職單。 記者 吳雅瑜 林國煌 台北報導