Minimum wage:
1998: 15840
2008: 17280
2016: 20008
2024: 27470
Tsai raised it more in 8 years than it was raised the previous 20 years.
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Yes thatās is true but itās still very small increases versus GDP over the whole period and off a very low base , and now inflation eats away at incomes.
The factory owners arenāt complaining as much about small increases probably because NTD is weakening again so their profits are just fine versus local costs. 4% increases in minimum wage is keeping up with inflation , maybe maybe not? For instance prices in many restaurants have been going up faster than that.
I will say itās not bad that the min wages have gone up every year for 8 years ,but itās also not great either because the base was set so low to begin with.
They also are getting approval for a lot more migrant labour to come in.
I just gave my wife a 10% salary increase. My overseas clients also got a nice increase for my services and the NT$ has gone from US$27.5 to my last incoming of NT$32.4 to my business account.
In the meantime my supplier from Japan the yen has gone from US$1 Yen 110 to US$1 Yen 151 so I am paying a lot less in US$ for my content. My supplier doesnāt care are he still gets a nice profit as I pay him in HK when his last payment was at US$1 Yen 130 so he got a nice extra bit if he uses the funds back in Japan.
Is Roy Ngerng one of your clients?
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Yes. He annoys me to no end.
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He has some valid cost of living points, but I agree his arguments are generally flawed when you look at the data used.
Iāve asked about some inaccuracies Iāve seen in charts he has published and he will just ghost or block you.
I think he would be more effective if he beat his drum less and instead put more time into fact checking. It feels like heās grasping for data points to fit a pre-determined narrativeā¦
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I do not do business with individuals. I do not have any clients in Taiwan. Anyway Iāve never heard of the chap nor read any of his so called ramblings.
Agreed word to word. Heās the worst.
He does not ramble. He bangs on, again and again, about the same topic.
Guy
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This is one of his typical arguments:
One country raised the minimum wage without making prices go up. Therefore, it wonāt happen in Taiwan if we do it.
Sociologists arenāt known for rigorous methodology.
He is not in the university system here. Why do you think of him as a āsociologistā?
Iād describe him more as a commentator on labour issues, perhaps an activist too given how he reportedly ran afoul of the Singaporean government.
Guy
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Pretty succinct summary of the Tsai government, on many issues. Wish weād be dealing with our carbon emissions better though. Still plenty of room for improvement.
Guy
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I used to not like the Singaporean government but for this I give them a big thumbs up.
The enemy of my enemy is my . . . friend?
You and former mayor Ko may have more in common than first meets the eye. 
Guy
The labour situation in Taiwan isnāt good. Many local workers in factories are on 6 days off per month contracts . Mandatory to accept or you wonāt get hired. Pretty sure that is over the basic working hours agreement but they have already figured out ways around it, probably by saying you get a āovertime bonusā every month by agreeing the 6 day off per month contract. Even though you wonāt get hired unless you agree to these terms.
Yeah, thatās weak. But, whatās this?
Well I canāt find what itās like now, that why I said LIKELY.
Outspoken randos online are definitely not known for methodology, but at least this dude is known
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Thatās what his degree is in.