TSMC Halts Steel Work in Taiwan After Four Deaths

Four construction workers have died after a fall at the site of a new TSMC chip factory in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan. The world’s largest contract chipmaker said on 21 October that the four were killed the previous day during steel-structure construction, and that it had stopped similar work across the island while the accident is investigated, Reuters reported via The Straits Times.

“We and our construction contractor immediately suspended related construction work at the site, and we have also suspended similar steel structure work at all our construction sites across Taiwan pending our investigation,” TSMC said in an emailed statement. Its on-site safety team, it added, is “cooperating with the relevant authorities and our construction contractor to investigate the incident and ensure appropriate remedial steps are taken”.

What is known about the accident

Taiwanese authorities have given more detail than the company. The site is TSMC’s Fab 22, which is under construction in the Southern Taiwan Science Park, according to Focus Taiwan, the English service of the national news agency CNA.

The accident happened at about 4:53pm on Tuesday, Taiwan News reported. The four men worked for a contractor, Shang Hao Machinery Co., and were hoisting and installing steel on the third floor when they fell along with steel components. Three died that evening. The fourth died at Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital on Wednesday morning after emergency surgery and intensive care, the Southern Taiwan Science Park Bureau said.

Preliminary findings suggest bolts on a connecting plate on the exterior steel structure may have broken, Taiwan News reported, citing local media. All four were wearing safety harnesses, but the falling structure stopped their safety ropes from working. Officials stress that the exact cause is still under investigation. TSMC said the accident happened in an area contracted to an outside company, and that its on-site safety team was helping the contractor with follow-up arrangements.

Inspections and the road to restarting

Labour inspectors were sent to the site after the accident and ordered steel hoisting there to stop. The science park bureau said work will resume only once Shang Hao submits an improvement plan that passes review, and that penalties will follow from the investigation under occupational safety law, Focus Taiwan reported. Investigators will examine the connecting plates, the bolts, the hoisting procedures and compliance with safety rules.

The bureau also published the site’s inspection record. It underwent three labour inspections in 2025 and 18 so far in 2026, including a steel-structure inspection on 8 July. Those inspections led to fines totalling NT$210,000 (about US$6,500), all on two other contractors rather than the dead workers’ employer.

As for timing, the bureau said any effect on Fab 22’s construction schedule would depend on arrangements that are the responsibility of TSMC and its contractors. TSMC has not commented on the schedule.

Calls for independent oversight

The Taiwan Association for Victims of Occupational Injuries has called on TSMC to carry out safety inspections at all its construction sites and to set up independent third-party oversight. It urged investors and government representatives to press the company to publish accident analyses, its contractor oversight measures and its safety improvements. It also wants accident prevention built into management assessments, and an independent safety system in which workers take part.

TSMC said it is assisting the investigation. Its decision to pause similar work across Taiwan, rather than at one site, means the investigation will be closely watched beyond Kaohsiung. The voluntary pause is likely to last until TSMC and the authorities can explain why the bolts appear to have failed.