Taiwan’s Firefighter Protests: A Climate Issue, too?
Why You Should Know
In recent weeks, Taiwan’s National Association for Firefighters’ Rights (消防員工作權益促進會) has been staging a series of protests, demanding better working conditions and the right to unionize. The protests were triggered by a devastating factory fire in the Southern city of Pingtung, which killed four firemen and exposed significant weaknesses in Taiwan’s fire protection. The protests are also relevant from a climate perspective: They highlight the importance of well-funded and functional fire departments in times of climate crisis, given the increasing frequency of climate-induced natural disasters.
The News
In the aftermath of a tragic fire at a golf ball factory in Pingtung, in which four firefighters were killed, Taiwanese firefighters have staged a series of protests in front of government buildings on Taipei’s Ketagalan Boulevard. The demonstrations have been organized by the National Association for Firefighters’ Rights (NAFR), which has called for more stringent fire safety regulations and better working conditions. The association has also demanded the right to form a union (工會), a right currently denied to civil servants in Taiwan. Support has come from a range of other unions and civil society organizations, including three environmental groups. During one demonstration in October, representatives of the Green Citizens’ Action Alliance (綠色公民行動聯盟), Citizen of the Earth (地球公民基金會)，and the Environmental Rights Foundation (環境權保障基金會) expressed their support for the firefighters’ demands and highlighted the links between fire safety and environmental issues, such as pollution in the chemical industry.
Our View
It is important to support the firefighters’ demands, including from a climate perspective: After all, a functioning, well-staffed and well-funded civilian infrastructure is essential to facing the various health and safety threats exacerbated by the climate crisis, including fire risks and natural disasters. Due to global heating and climate change-induced changes in rainfall patterns, the frequency and severity of wildfires is already projected to increase in the future in Taiwan. Fire departments are also crucial to typhoon readiness, as they are responsible for providing emergency medical support and disaster rescue services. Although the frequency of typhoons is expected to decrease due to climate change, the typhoons reaching Taiwan are expected to intensify in severity and impact. This means that funding for fire safety and firefighters’ working conditions are also a climate adaptation issue.
Moreover, Taiwan is not alone: Many neighboring countries in the Pacific region face even worse climate impacts. This includes Pacific island countries like Palau, countries under the New Southbound Policy, as well as Australia, which has suffered from devastating wildfires in past years. Improving and expanding public fire services would therefore also enable Taiwan to contribute more significantly to international solidarity efforts.
The tragic Pingtung factory has ultimately also become an occasion to question the political status quo in regard to Taiwan’s labor rights. Extending the right to unionize to civil servants (which would also benefit organizing efforts in other sectors, such as education) and would be an important step in shifting the society-wide balance of forces and democratizing public workplaces. It would provide public servants with an effective means to hold the government accountable on issues such work safety regulations and pay, which would likely set higher standards for other industries, too. Currently, the opposite seems to be the case, with private companies like TSMC reportedly luring firefighters away from the National Fire Agency with higher salaries and better working conditions. This is why supporting the right to unionize for firefighters specifically and civil servants generally is so important.
Further Reading
Author: Elias König
