TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting, and Statistics (DGBAS, 主計總處) announced Monday (Oct. 14) that real regular wages and total wages for employees in industrial and service sectors have grown during the first eight months of 2024, outpacing inflation.
The average regular wage in August reached NT$46,751, marking a 3.08% year-over-year increase. Non-regular wages were NT$12,669, bringing the total average wage to NT$59,420, a 6.02% annual rise.
The accumulated data from Jan. to Aug. shows an average regular wage of NT$46,331 and a total wage of NT$63,261, reflecting a 4.27% year-over-year growth, the most significant increase in a decade. After adjusting for inflation, the real regular wage median is NT$34,613, a modest 1% rise.
Tan Wen-ling (譚文玲), a DGBAS official, attributed this positive growth to companies adjusting salaries and distributing bonuses.
Among industries, the finance and insurance sectors saw a 6.23% increase in regular wages due to strong operations and increased performance bonuses. The transport, storage, and real estate sectors also experienced 3.69% growth.
In terms of total wages, the finance and insurance sectors led with an 11.49% increase, while the manufacturing sector grew by 4.40%, with electronic component manufacturing up by 7.60%.
Despite a monthly decrease in manufacturing employment, Tan noted that overtime hours remained high at 16.9, indicating stable economic conditions.
She added that manufacturers typically increase overtime to handle urgent orders and only hire more staff when overtime reaches a certain level.