I was just offered a lead research engineer position in a Taiwanese government research institute, in more or less the same ecosystem as a previous thread of mine:
This time I have a number: the salary offered would be about NTD$215k/month. Somewhat underwhelming, in comparison to the average salary for PhD-level engineers in the US, particularly if they are leading a research group with a lot of experience.
Potential employer said as a govt institute the salaries are low and he doesn’t have much flexibility to increase it more. Is this true?
Also, that “costs of living in Taiwan are lower”.
Why would anyone work for a government research institute if the salaries are so low? Are the perks and other benefits like a pension or housing assistance make it worth it? How much flexibility is there to negotiate perks?
Location of the organization is close to, but not in, Taipei.
For the first question. Not everywhere is the states.
Benefits are amazeballs at senior manager/director levels below that basically non existent. However work life balance is really good at government research institutions.
There might be some perk flexibility depends how senior we are talking about.
This salary is comparable to what highly paid top-level software engineers are making, working in Hsintsu for the largest and most respectable global tech companies in all of Taiwan. You’ll certainly be in the top 1% of salary earners in Taiwan. I wouldn’t worry too much if I were you.
The boss is right, the government is more rigid in its salary scale, and for the TW gov 200K a month is awesome.
some professors and researchers take advantage of research grants to supplement their salary (e.g. using travel grant to fly home, as long as you attend a relevant conference in your field ), but that is gray area.
Most research doesn’t happen in Taipei, which is—with the notable exception of some institutes in Nangang—a government town not a research town. You’d most likely be in places such as Hsinchu or perhaps Longtan depending on your expertise.
As a non citizen, you wont be eligible for a pension till you get your APRC.
housing assistance : yes, possible. if foreign english teachers get it, so can you.
home visits : try to get air fare for home visits
vacation : probably more difficult, but try to het more vacation days. in TW its based on seniority, so they moght follow the la or law and give you 10 days on your first year.
NT$215,000 per month?
If so, unless you have a drug habit, you’ll be swinging way above nearly all Taipei’ers’ grade pay and saving a sheetload of money.
Again, unless you have a drug habit or some other habit that makes you spend a stupid amount of money in a very cheap place (comparatively), you will save a lot of money on that salary.
$216,000 is a great salary but I’m not sure how much people get paid for this kind of work.
Izzy makes a good point, employers don’t have to pay into the pension account if you don’t have an APRC but they can if they want to. It would be worth asking them to do that if you plan on staying in Taiwan long term.
$215K a month in Taiwan is incredible, especially outside of Taipei. Keep in mind, as well as the general low cost of living, taxes are low and there’s a strong bonus culture here, with very generous Chinese New Year bonuses and, often, smaller bonuses throughout the year.
congrats! but inquiring minds want to know what happened regarding the previous thread (to which I thought there was some horrible advice given the level of details given).
What sort of work life balance are we talking about? What are the working hours, off days, etc. at government research institutions?
What benefits could I try to negotiate in as well?
Thank you
Yes I’ve heard how an illness in America can bankrupt you, as well as generally expensive medical bills, while in Taiwan medical care is highly affordable.
Can anyone who has worked in the US comment on whether their financial situation was better off in the US or Taiwan (in terms of disposable income after taxes, insurance, living expenses, rent, etc.)?
OK thank you for the insight.
Thank you for clarifying. Some countries pay non-citizens their pension into a savings account, to be given to them as a lump sum in the event of your departure.
Re: housing assistance, home visits, vacation, etc - I will try to negotiate in.
No, I don’t have a drug habit. Just have aging parents I need to take care of because the health system in my (allegedly first world) home country is deplorable. And of course I want to put money away for a family in the future.
How does the bonus culture in Taiwan work in general? Is a Chinese New Year bonus guaranteed, even for foreigners? Surely it is at the discretion of the boss?
For a government research institute, do they have much flexibility in granting bonuses? Unlike commercial outfits which may have a profitable year, what incentivizes bosses in government organizations to give out bonuses?
I live frugally and am not flashy.
The car I drive is second hand, bought with 300k km on the odometer. Don’t really see the point in showing off.
I am sorry if I gave the impression, it was not my intention to brag. I just wanted to gauge if:
I was being paid according to what I bring to the table;
If my boss had any more flexibility as the head of a government organization in terms of salary, or…
…other forms of remuneration exist, e.g. flexible hours
What are the benefits of working in a government organization vs. a commercial company.
There was no other way to get this assessment other than being frank.
Corrected.
