Work Better Innovations Impact Report on 2022 Forced Labour Education Project in Taiwan

Project SummaryImpact

Work Better Innovations

Guidebook and Trainings for SMEs in Taiwan: Understanding the International Labour Organization Indicators of Forced Labour

“I’m really impressed with the guidebook about the ILO indicators of forced labour. This is exactly what is needed right now for many organisations and stakeholders to gain a better understanding of the (potential) issues related to BHR [business and human rights] in Taiwan. Great work on finding all these case studies and adding the analysis from a Taiwanese perspective, that is incredibly helpful.”

(Pre-launch with leading Taiwan civil society organisations on 12 December 2022)

— Civil society representative who works on business and human rights globally and with a focus on East Asia.

In 2022, Work Better Innovations was tasked by a Fortune 50 global brand to deliver a pilot project tailored to the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) landscape in Taiwan. The project is aimed at promoting international labour standards in Taiwan, particularly on the topic of forced labour in the supply chain. A central part of the project is its bilingual policy guidance on the International Labour Organization’s 11 forced labour indicators. The guidebook is specific to the local context of Taiwan and is accessible for the 99% of all business enterprises in Taiwan, the SMEs that dominate the local economy.

Project Impact Summary

Work Better Innovations 3

To address international labour standards in education, risks of breaching the standards must be explained in an easy-to-understand manner. This is the only way that we can create and promote an enabling environment where everyone has a role to play in eliminating forced labour. Our project impact summary states how we made a difference with this project.

Impact in Numbers

3 training sessions in Taiwan in December 2022, in Hsinchu, Taichung and Kaohsiung

127 registered enterprises at the trainings

199 registered attendees

59% survey respondents said they came to learn about the ILO indicators and risks of forced labour

47.8% saw the workshops as a proactive measure necessary for cooperation with international brands

97% agreed that they learned more about forced labour after the workshops

8 international brand collaborators

2 industry alliances

4 collaborating universities

2 university lectures

1 workshop with 25 civil society representatives

1 podcast

1 recorded webinar

500+ copies of the Chinese Guidebook distributed

1,500+ views online of both the Chinese and English Guidebooks

3 Guidebooks sent to Taiwan’s Executive Branch and the National Human Rights Commission

As part of the project launch in Taiwan in December 2022, Work Better Innovations delivered a series of trainings, workshops and events led by Executive Director Dr Bonny Ling and Project Consultant Dr Kenzi Chen on the risks of forced labour in Taiwan.

We organised three training sessions, one public lecture, one university lecture and one consultation meeting in three cities across Taiwan in one month. Built greater awareness among 154 representatives from 127 small and medium-sized enterprises, our intended audience in preventing forced labour, due to the prominent role they play in the Taiwanese domestic economy.

We received overwhelmingly positive feedback from the post-training survey. Nearly every survey respondent (97%) found the training sessions helpful in gaining a fuller understanding of forced labour. High rate of response to the post-event survey. Around 70% of our attendees completed the post-training survey.

Attendees indicated they were self-motivated or recommended by companies’ international clients to come to the training sessions.

8 migrant workers and volunteers from a migrant shelter attended one of the training sessions and provided feedback that will be incorporated into future events.

(Post-training photo in Hsinchu with the team from Taiwan’s ESG World Citizens & Digital Governance Foundation)

Quotes from participants

“Thank you for arranging the event. It provided accessible information on how Taiwan can improve regarding international labour standards.”

(感謝貴單位提供此課程、可以簡單明瞭的得到目前台 灣在國際上仍然有需改善的空間。)

“A fantastic event that offered insight into the global supply chain.” (很棒的分享、有Global Supply Chain的思維。)

“Looking forwards to more events on this issue.” (可多舉辦類似議題。)

“I think your workshop training is absolutely a wonderful approach to address the issues and indicators of forced labor. Frequently migrant workers experienc[e] these indicators of forced labor, and it’s happening more than perhaps the public and even private sector realizes.”

Work Better Innovations

Future Developments

Several potential initiatives of collaboration with Work Better Innovations were introduced following our SMEs targeted trainings:

Education workshops on Business and Human Rights for the next generation of SMEs owners in Taiwan via business school education

A future collaboration with National Chung Hsing University in Taichung which leads in promoting responsible consumption and production (Sustainable Development Goal 12) among business students

A great opportunity to continue collaboration with the International College of Innovation at National Chengchi University in Taipei to raise awareness on business and social issues

Project Impact Summary

Work Better Innovations

Executive Director Dr Bonny Ling will be lecturing a fully accredited semester class on International Human Rights in Supply Chain at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Spring Semester 2023.

We are excited about the expansion of the project and its potential future impacts.

We thank the support of our funder and collaborators for their sustained attention on Taiwan and the corporate responsibility to respect human rights, Pillar 2 of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs).

(8 migrant workers and volunteers from a migrant shelter attended one of the training sessions and provided feedback that will be incorporated into future events)

Layout by Hui Hsuan Wang 2023.