Couple Weds 4 Times, Divorces 3 Times, in 37 Days

Taiwan newlyweds accused of trying to milk nation's policy for paid marriage leave
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 23, 2021 8:48 AM CDT
Pair Allegedly Wed 4 Times in 37 Days for the Vacation Days
Stock photo.   (Pexels/Jeremy Wong)

A couple in Taiwan stayed quite busy during the early days of the pandemic, getting married four times and filing for three divorces between April 6 and May 12 of last year. The reason, according to public records from the groom's employer, a Taipei bank: The newlyweds were trying to take advantage of the country's paid leave policy for marriages, which gives employees eight days off for the big event, reports the New York Times. The paper lays out the timeline for the serial unions and very conscious uncouplings, starting with the original marriage on April 6, 2020. Ten days later, the couple divorced for the first time, followed by a second wedding the next day, April 17. On April 28 came the second divorce, followed by a third marriage on April 29. Their next official parting came on May 11, with their fourth (and so far final) wedding taking place May 12.

The bank apparently caught on to the scheme fairly quickly and wouldn't greenlight more than the eight days the groom was entitled to for his first wedding. That's when the employee registered a complaint with the labor department, which at first fined the bank about $700 in October. The bank appealed that fine in February, arguing the worker had exploited the nation's labor laws, and last week, the labor unit announced the fine had been revoked. AFP notes the worker has since quit the bank, and an official tells the outlet that the man has continued to call the labor department to insist the bank owes him 24 more days of pay for the last three weddings. Local officials and the public don't seem in general to be terribly sympathetic to the couple's plight. "I'm honestly quite speechless," Taipei Deputy Mayor Vivian Huang said in a Facebook post, per Vice. "This is why ... we need to build a mature civil society." (More Taiwan stories.)

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