Indigenous haulage organization provides work to city-bound tribal villagers

In operation since 1998, ‘New Taipei City Indigenous Haulage Cooperative’ currently has 59 members, 80% of which are of indigenous origin. With a customer base made up from a mixture of private individuals and civil service contracts, the cooperative’s mainstay includes home and office packing and removals, as well as the package and removal of tools and machinery from large factories – this entails the operation of heavy lifting machinery.

Located in New Taipei City’s Banqiao District, the cooperative gives valuable work opportunities to indigenous people from tribal villages that have newly arrived in the city. Liao Ren-yi (廖仁義), the current cooperative chairman said he began working part time immediately after graduating from elementary school. Leaving his village in Taoyuan’s Fuxing Township for Banqiao in 1975, though many years have past, he still vividly recalls his struggle and difficulty in adjusting to city life. Liao entered the haulage industry back in 1979, an experience that planted the seeds to later co-establish the cooperative with friends. 

New Taipei City Indigenous Haulage Cooperative is the only registered indigenous cooperative in Taiwan. Working in the haulage industry means that workers must accommodate the availability of clients, and therefore members often work late at night or early in the morning. Extremely exhausting work with a high risk of physical injury, it is no surprise that fewer and fewer young men are willing to enter this field. In the face of such difficulties, though there is no immediate answer to this problem, Chairman Liao Ren-yi is still hopeful that the cooperative will remain in operation and continue to provide work opportunities to young indigenous villagers. 

Indigenous haulage organization provides work to city-bound tribal villagers

URL:https://www.peopo.org/news/243315

(以下是中文對照)

原民搬運組織 部落到都市的依靠

「新北市原住民勞動搬運合作社」從一九九八年六月成立至今，目前有五十九名社員，其中社員原住民族者占了八成以上，合作社的主要業務為一般住家、辦公室等居家包裝、搬運；大型工廠、機具搬運、起重、吊掛以及檔案整理、打包、搬遷，客戶來源則是公家機關與民間散戶參半。合作社位於新北市板橋區，能就近提供從部落到都市的原住民工作機會。現任理事主席廖仁義說，他從小學畢業就開始半工半讀的生活，一九七五年離開桃園復興鄉的部落，到板橋生活，儘管經過這麼多年，廖仁義仍記得當初隻身前往大都市打拼的辛苦與不適應；一九七九年廖仁義投入搬家行業，種下了之後與朋友合夥成立搬運合作社的機緣。

新北市原住民搬運勞動合作社是全台第一家，申請由原住民所組成的合作社，合作社的搬運工作，需要配合客戶的時間，常常要在深夜、凌晨出工，做的又是極耗費精力且容易受傷的體力活，因此越來越少年輕人願意投入這樣的工作。面對困境，雖然暫無具體的解決辦法，但廖仁義希望合作社能夠永續經營，繼續提供更多的工作機會給部落青年。