The injury and illness benefits stipulated in the Labor Insurance Act are subsidies payable to workers who cannot work and subsequently are unable to receive their original wages due to injury and illness, while the old-age retirement benefits are for those workers retiring from their jobs who consequently will no longer receive their wages. Both types of benefits are of the same nature and thus those workers applying for old-age benefits are disqualified from concurrent application for injury and illness benefits. The interpretative letter issued by the Ministry of Interior titled Tai-Ney-Sheh-Tzeyh No. 17731 on June 13, 1980, states that "those workers retiring from their jobs and withdrawing from the Labor Insurance Program in accordance with related regulations and applying for old-age benefits are not allowed to apply for injury and illness benefits as stipulated in Article 20 of the Labor Insurance Act." The letter is in line with the above meaning and reasoning, and therefore, cannot be deemed as contrary to the Constitution.

       In accordance with Article 33 of the Labor Insurance Act which stipulates that "in case an insured person is unable to work and cannot receive his regular wages due to an ordinary injury and illness for which he (or she) is hospitalized and under medical treatment, he (or she) shall receive ordinary injury or illness benefits upon the fourth day on which he (or she) is unable to work." It is clear that injury or illness benefits are subsidies for those workers who are unable to work and subsequently unable to receive their regular wages. Besides, Article 58, Paragraph 1, of the same Act also stipulates that once a certain level of seniority has been reached by a person who enrolls in the Labor Insurance Program, the insured person is entitled to retire from his (or her) job. The old-age benefits, which an insured person is qualified to apply for, are also a payment given to a worker who is retiring from his (or her) job. Both types of benefits are of the same nature, and those workers who are applying for old-age benefits are disqualified from concurrent application for injury or illness benefits. Article 20, Paragraph 1, first sentence, of the Labor Insurance Act, stipulates that "an insured person is entitled to enjoy the rights of insurance benefits within one year after the validity of his (or her) insurance has ended, if the incident of the injury or illness occurred during the period his (or her) insurance coverage was valid, and he (or she) has continuously applied for injury or illness benefits or received hospitalization for medical treatment." The end of the validity of insurance referred to above does not specify leaving one’s job as an exclusive cause. Therefore, if an insured person is retiring from his (or her) job and has applied for old-age benefits, he (or she) is obliged to make the adjustments based on the abovementioned statements. Accordingly, the interpretative letter issued by the Ministry of Interior on June 13, 1980, titled Tai-Ney-Sheh-Tzyh No. 17731, states that "those workers retiring from their jobs and withdrawing from the Labor Insurance Program in accordance with related regulations and applying for old-age benefits are not allowed to apply for injury and illness benefits as stipulated in Article 20 of the Labor Insurance Act." The letter is in line with the above meaning and reasoning and, therefore, is not contrary to the Constitution.  * 

*Translated by Mr. Cing-Kae Chiao.