2020/12/23 18:32 (Taiwan News photo) TAIPEI (Taiwan News) Up to 142 companies registered in Taipei shut down their businesses in 2020, setting a new record, with many closures attributed to the pandemic, according to a city government official. Among the high-profile permanent closures were Far Eastern Air Transport Corp. in April, major gym chain Light Fitness in February, Fu-Le M.E.M. Co. in August, and How Yu Construction Co. in August. Taipei Department of Labor Commissioner Chen Hsin-yu (陳信瑜) said the agency s labor insurance unit can pay sacked employees six months of wages, severance packages, or pensions in advance as temporary relief measures, though the employers will later have to repay the agency.