Taiwan authorities pledged on Wednesday afternoon to inject 3.7 billion New Taiwan dollars (112 million US dollars) to help at least 30,000 local residents find employment by the end of next June.

Wang Ju-hsuan, chairwoman of the "Council of Labor Affairs of Executive Yuan," announced plans to encourage private businesses to offer more jobs for locals.

Under the plan, private enterprises would be compensated with 10,000 New Taiwan dollars each month for hiring one Taiwanese who had been out of work for three months or longer. They could also receive nearly 18,000 New Taiwan dollars a month for recruiting first-time job seekers.

Enterprises could receive up to six months compensation under the plan, according to the official.

Taiwan's unemployment rate was 4.27 percent in September, up 0.13 percent from August.

In total, 464,000 people were out of work in September, while the unemployed averaged 430,000 over the first nine months, according to the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

DGBAS officials said the high unemployment was a result of the global financial crisis's impact on the island and Taiwan's slow-paced economic growth.

(Xinhua News Agency October 23, 2008)