Sounds like a real dick. Maybe time to find a new boss.
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All Taiwanese bosses act like dicks. Almost like confucian ethics demand they be one.
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In my short time in the corporate world, how your colleagues and bosses view you is more important than the performance many times. This is why Iâm glad I am my own boss now, office dynamics are gross as an employee.
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I also experienced it during my alternative military service. The school principal was a dick and falsely accused me of not learning the culture even though I always insisted on learning Mandarin Chinese, understanding the cuisine, learning how to greet elders, etc.
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Yea if you are on the spectrum then God help you.
They expect you to understand stuff that no one talks about.
Seriously office culture is beyond toxic in Taiwan. If you thought American office culture culture was bad you havenât seen anything yet.
In Taiwan when you perform well, they say little if anything at all, in fact theyâll still find SOMETHING to complain about even if they found your performance exemplary. It isnât about learning Chinese, understanding the cuisine, or learning to greet elders. Itâs far beyond that. In fact I have no idea what it is. In fact I think itâs probably the unpaid overtime and not leaving work before the boss does regardless of what time it says on the clock.
But if they really wanted you out they will give very clear and obvious signals. Such as giving you a chicken head during the weiya. Or flat out fire you for no reason (or assumed reasons).
If they want you out MAKE them terminate you. You get employment insurance when they do that. You get nothing if you quit.
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He did state that he doesnât have much to say about my performance.
Do you think heâs also trying to imply that I donât help my co-workers a lot?
Is it possible that they hate the way you run meetings? Perhaps you are not good at this, or at least not good at it in this culture? Man, I hate being in meetings run by people who donât know how to run meetings.
And how often do you take on the suggestions from others? Is it possible that you are missing out on good ideas, because you canât see past your own perspective?
Maybe heâs getting problems from other employees who want such a raise, or donât think youâre worth it so they complain. Easy way for him to save money and solve problems is to encourage you to leave; if he gets rid of you after giving you the raise heâll lose face.
Seems entirely possible
Seems entirely possible
I dont know if many locals, but they do have a point sometimes. a relatively high ratio of the pretentious and obnoxious people I met here were ABCs.
Regardless of what everyone else says⌠donât even try to decode what the bossâs message.
They need a punching bag, theyâre paying you a lot to be one. So they are going to find any excuse they can to find fault. Itâs their job.
You can either bear it, or save up enough and be your own boss and quit.
But they will always find an issue no matter what. In Taiwan bosses have to be mean, they have to be unsatisfied. You ever seen how OFW get treated? Thatâs how they want to treat EVERYONE.
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I donât know, but I do know your boss sounds like an asshole.
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HeyâŚGuys too. Once they find out you get paid more than em oh boyâŚItâs shoot em time and you got a crosshairs on yer head.
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In Taiwan being seen to be a team member and doing team stuff, sharing some chocolates around the office or even just occasionally eating biandangs or having lunch or going on a company trip together is really really important , especially if you are a team leader. Also if you were leaving on time and others were leaving laterâŚThey will get pissed off after a while. Either the boss or the moany coworkers.
I was earning a good salary and I only lasted 1 year in my last Taiwanese employer. At the end I was getting hostile vibes from some of the staff and one of the bosses. Donât know whyâŚPossibly because I was not hanging around doing lots of overtime and getting paid (relatively ) well and they knew my salary . Kind of mutual agreement by the time I quit there, but we parted without hostilities commencing.
This boss has already undermined you and going to suck your confidence away. A job is just a job , go and find a better place and try to be a bit more social in the next one.
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Look at the Moderna vaccine giveaway currently underway at Taipei Main Stationâfree stuff provided! As Brian Jones suggested, consider bringing chocolates, small snacks, stuff to share with the team. If youâre decent and generous (whether in this job, or the next), itâs a lot harder for people to go after youâafter all, you just gave them some gifts! There will almost always be office assholes, but itâll be harder for them to round up the pack to attack you. 
Guy
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I bought 200 candy canes from Sobeys for an office of 70.
Never seen candy canes in Taiwan. While they will likely appreciate the gesture, I will find the bewilderment at the never-before-seen confectionary highly entertaining and amusing.
Canât wait for the
too sweet
too hot
too cold
tooâŚ
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Ok, Iâll start.
Too sweet!
Guy
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People here almost never come at you directly. This goes for bosses as well as coworkers. When the bullet that ends your job comes, youâll probably never know where it came from. Sometimes this is true in Western countries as well, but itâs even more true in Taiwan.
Keeping in as close contact (i.e. gossiping) is, sadly, a form of insurance. If you arenât reaching out to your coworkers as much this would be a problem anywhere. Find some others to complain with in the shadows and theyâll likely have your back later on, complain more publicly and youâre doomed. We all have to make peace with this aspect of Taiwan sooner or later, which isnât to say it isnât frustrating.
Iâm not saying youâre wrong, but sometimes the best response to a conversation like that is âOh, really? Iâm so sorry, how can I improve?â This lets your boss know that youâre willing to play ball - even if you arenât. Work here involves a lot of passive resistance, and appearing to be a team player is part of that.
From what you said above I think you might be in the right, and it might be in your bossâs interest to be more flexible in this matter, but youâll need to let him think that heâs right even while youâre convinced that heâs wrong.
Just my opinion though.
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In a Taiwanese workplace, the boss is ALWAYS right, even if he does something stupid.
Basically never correct a boss. Itâs a loss of face even if the correction would save the company from losing millions.
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The manager kept saying that he doesnât have much to say about my job performance.
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At any given time, whether a company is doing good or bad. If you canât identify who would be the first to be let go, itâs probably you.