Employees in Taiwan earned more to kick off 2023

The average regular wage in Taiwan reached NT$45,376 (US$1,487) in January 2023, which represents a 2.3% year-on-year increase, according to the latest report from Taiwan’s Directorate General of Budget, Accounting, and Statistics (DGBAS).

When combined with the average year-end bonus of NT$62,360 (US$2,035), employees in Taiwan received a total average earnings of NT$107,736 (US$3,516) in January, an annual increase of 1.52%, DGBAS reported.

Where year-end bonuses are concerned, the financial and insurance industry received NT$201,260 (US$6,569) on average, followed by NT$93,276 (US$3,044) for employees in the publishing, video production, broadcasting and information services industries, and NT$65,853 (US$2,149) for the manufacturing sector. With less than NT$20,000 (US$653), employees in the hospital and restaurant sectors received the lowest pay out.

Despite the bonuses, persistent inflation has reduced employees’ wages. The consumer price index in Taiwan grew by 3.05% in January, leading to a year-on-year decline of 0.72% and 1.49% in real regular earning and real annual income, respectively.

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In terms of gross monthly income, which includes regular salary plus year-end bonus, employees from financial holding organisations received the highest amount of NT$509,764 (US$16,638), followed by employees in marine transportation services with NT$284,832 (US$9,296), bank employees with NT$281,829 (US$9,198), and employees in telecommunications organisations with NT$256,141 (US$8,360) in January.

As of the end of January, Taiwan had 8.176 million people employed, a monthly reduction of 25,000. This reduction, according to the DGBAS, was mainly due to job shifts and the ending of temporary part-time work after the Lunar New Year holiday, reported Focus Taiwan.