Ministry of Labor Finalizes the Workplace Bullying Prevention Measures Regulations: Seven Key Changes and a Compliance Guide for Employers

Since the Ministry of Labor released the draft Workplace Bullying Prevention Regulations, the proposed rules have generated extensive discussion over the past two months. Many HR leaders have been concerned that the strict timelines and unclear areas in the draft could become hidden operational risks for employers.

There is now important good news for employers.

On the afternoon of June 23, 2026, the Ministry of Labor officially finalized and announced the regulations under a revised title: the Workplace Bullying Prevention Measures Regulations.

Compared with the draft version, the final regulations reflect many practical concerns raised by employers and practitioners. They introduce concrete adjustments in operational flexibility, reasonableness of handling timelines, and differentiated requirements for employers of different sizes.

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Below, we summarize seven major changes between the final regulations and the draft version.

1. The Final Title Emphasizes Employer Responsibility and Practical Implementation

The change in the title reflects a shift in regulatory focus.

The draft title, “Workplace Bullying Prevention Regulations,” suggested a more general and abstract set of preventive rules. The final title, Workplace Bullying Prevention Measures Regulations, places greater emphasis on whether employers have established effective prevention measures and mechanisms.

For employers, this title provides clearer guidance on labor compliance direction. Employer responsibility is no longer an open-ended moral expectation. It must now be translated into concrete systems and procedures.

If a company establishes proper complaint-handling, investigation, and disciplinary measures in accordance with the law, it will be in a stronger position when facing workplace bullying-related labor disputes or labor inspections.

2. Timelines Have Been Relaxed and Shifted to Business-Day Calculation

One of the most challenging aspects of the draft for HR departments was that all deadlines were calculated by calendar days, including weekends and holidays.

The final regulations take into account the practical needs of corporate administration and significantly relax the relevant timelines by adopting business-day calculations.

For example, the deadline for deciding whether to accept a complaint has been changed from 10 calendar days after receipt of the complaint to 10 business days.

The deadline for entering the case into the reporting system has been changed from 7 calendar days after acceptance to 7 business days.

For employers with 100 or more employees, the deadline for forming an investigation panel has also been significantly extended from 7 days after acceptance to 15 business days from the date the complaint is received.

The deadlines for notifying the decision and registering the result have also been adjusted to 10 business days.

This change gives HR personnel responsible for workplace bullying prevention more practical administrative flexibility. It also reduces the risk that HR staff themselves must work on weekends simply to comply with rigid statutory deadlines.

3. Case Closure Deadlines Are Now Tiered by Company Size

The draft previously required all employers to complete the investigation report within two months. For small and medium-sized enterprises with limited resources, this created a significant burden.

The final regulations introduce clearer and differentiated overall case-handling deadlines based on employer size.

For employers with fewer than 30 employees, a decision must be made within three months from the day following receipt of the complaint. Where necessary, the period may be extended by one additional month.

For employers with 30 or more but fewer than 100 employees, a decision must be made within four months. Where necessary, the period may also be extended by one additional month.

For employers with 100 or more employees, the investigation report must be completed within two months from the day following the establishment of the investigation panel, with a possible extension of one additional month. The complaint-handling unit must then make a decision within one month after completion of the report.

This tiered structure allows companies of different sizes to implement workplace bullying compliance systems in a more practical and proportionate manner.

4. Post-Employment Complaints Are Limited, and the Problem of Respondents Leaving Employment Is Addressed

Under the draft, if the alleged bullying occurred while the employee was still employed, the employee could file a complaint within one year after leaving employment.

The final regulations add a reasonable limitation. The one-year post-employment complaint period applies only where the respondent allegedly used power or authority in connection with the conduct.

This adjustment helps reduce the risk of abusive or excessive post-employment complaints.

More importantly, in practice, employers often face a difficult situation where the alleged perpetrator has already resigned before the investigation or disciplinary process is completed, leaving the company with no practical way to impose discipline.

The final regulations address this issue by adding a proviso to the employer’s disciplinary obligation, stating that the requirement does not apply where the perpetrator has already left employment.

This resolves a long-standing practical difficulty for employers.

5. “Location” Is Added as a Factor in Determining Bullying, and Employee Headcount Calculation Is Clarified

How should workplace bullying be determined?

In the final regulations, the factors to be considered include not only the background, frequency, motive, and purpose of the conduct, but also the location where the conduct occurred.

This addition makes factual assessment more concrete and better aligned with today’s diversified work arrangements, including multi-site, remote, hybrid, and mobile work models.

The final regulations also clarify the basis for calculating the number of employees. The relevant headcount refers to employees of the business unit who perform work and receive wages.

Where a business is spread across different locations, the number of employees should be calculated separately.

This is particularly important for companies with multiple branches, factories, or operating sites. The method of headcount calculation will directly affect which level of statutory obligations applies.

6. The Complaint-Handling Unit Has Nine Statutory Duties, and Investigator Training Options Are Expanded

To provide clearer guidance for internal corporate operations, the final regulations list nine specific statutory duties of the complaint-handling unit.

These include accepting complaints, notifying results, registering information in the system, conducting coordination, reviewing investigation reports, and providing disciplinary recommendations.

This gives HR teams a clearer checklist when designing internal organizational procedures.

At the same time, for the requirement that internal investigators receive three hours of training, the final regulations clarify that such training may be completed by attending courses organized by the competent authority or by completing digital learning courses through a website established by the central competent authority.

This significantly reduces the training and compliance burden for employers.

7. Composite Cases Involving Sexual Harassment Introduce the Principle of Avoiding Repeated Questioning

In labor compliance practice, workplace bullying complaints may sometimes overlap with sexual harassment issues, creating complex composite cases.

The draft only provided that employers may handle such matters together to the extent that doing so does not conflict with the regulations.

The final regulations go further by strengthening victim protection. They expressly provide that employers should, according to the complainant’s wishes, investigate, interview, or clarify the relevant matters together where appropriate, and should avoid repeated questioning.

This helps prevent secondary harm to victims.

From the employer’s perspective, it also allows internal investigation resources to be better integrated and improves the efficiency of case handling.

A Reminder from Attorney Chen Yeh-Sin

The Ministry of Labor’s final Workplace Bullying Prevention Measures Regulations provide HR leaders with greater administrative flexibility and more reasonable timelines, particularly through the adoption of business-day calculations.

However, this does not mean that employers can afford to be complacent.

On the contrary, through future labor inspections, the competent authority is expected to review more closely whether companies have updated their internal rules and procedures in response to the new legal framework.

HR professionals responsible for workplace bullying prevention should immediately review the company’s employment contracts, employee codes of conduct, reward and disciplinary rules, and workplace bullying prevention, complaint-handling, and disciplinary regulations.

Employers should also confirm the employee headcount of each branch, plant, or operating site, and verify whether internal investigators have completed the legally required training hours.

Only by planning early and putting systems in place can employers protect employee rights while effectively managing legal risk.

In response to the new rules, has your company already designated a responsible workplace bullying prevention contact window?

Has your company adopted and announced its workplace bullying prevention measures, complaint-handling procedures, and disciplinary rules in accordance with the amended Occupational Safety and Health Act and its subsidiary regulations?

Are the members of your investigation panel truly ready?

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