Taiwan city seeks 'monkey chasers'

Chasing monkeys has been added to the jobs on offer in Taiwan under a government-sponsored programme to boost employment, an official said Wednesday.

Kaohsiung city in southern Taiwan is offering 17,600 Taiwan dollars ($560) a month for staff charged with keeping the primates from developing too disturbing behavioural patterns, said the official at the city's labour bureau.

"The 'monkey chasers' will tell people not to feed wild monkeys, as that will lead them to develop abnormal behaviours such as grabbing people's food or invading homes," he said.

Many people have inquired about the positions, he said, adding only those aged 45 years or older will be eligible under the scheme.

Taiwan's jobless rate was 5.17 per cent in August, down 0.03 percentage points from last month amid an economic recovery, according to government data.

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