Job Discussion Forums

[romanworld]

It is common knowledge that Taiwan has a very low birth rate and that the population is aging. This demographic is particularly worrying because it means less revenue coming in from taxation and more money going out in the form of pensions. It doesn't take an Einstein to realize that if tax revenues continue to fall, then Taiwan will face considerable financial strain in the imminent future. And it appears that this is starting to happen according to stories I've recently read in the Taiwanese popular press. For example, just last month the Maoli County government was unable to pay salaries and pensions and had to get a bale out from the national government. Yunlin, whose debt is even higher than Maoli's, is touted to fall next.

http://focustaiwan.tw/news/awps/201507140025.aspx

Other evidence of worrying times ahead is the fact that labor groups have been calling for an increase in the minimum wage to $NT26,000 per month - hardly a king's ransom - but the Economics Ministry have refused, saying that it is not the right time to make wage adjustments because the economic outlook appears bleak.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/business/2015/08/13/443121/Government-not.htm

On a similar note, unions have been calling on the Ministry of Labor to increase the insurance contribution rate from 6 to 12.5% so that workers will have enough money for their retirement. Not surprisingly, the MOL have refused to make the adjustment, leaving unions and their members feeling chagrined.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2015/08/04/442387/Labor-unions.htm

In the realm of higher education the outlook appears bleak too. The MOE has predicted that student enrollments will start to be felt next year in 2016. By 2023 enrollments are predicted to fall by a third. What this means is that Taiwan is not the best place to look for a job in Higher Education right now. What is more worrying is that those foreign teachers who are currently 'trapped' in the tertiary sector may end up not getting their golden handshake at the end of their career and finding themselves destitute with nowhere to go. Some may argue with me here and say that these foreigners could go back to their native countries where they could live quite comfortably off a state pension. OK, but do these same foreigners realize that they won't get a pension unless they've kept up their regular contributions to the state pension scheme in their respective countries? Thus with no savings and a meagre payoff from the university they've given their whole life too, what options are left? This is a question that foreign teachers working in the HE sector in Taiwan really need to think about. It is a question I'm sure that will cause considerable consternation.

http://monitor.icef.com/2015/04/taiwan-plans-to-close-up-to-a-third-of-its-universities-in-the-next-decade/

[markcmc]

But Taiwan is no more broke than many countries – including western ones.

On pensions, teachers do need to take care if they teach longterm abroad. In Taiwan the pension you're likely to receive is small and dependent on you paying into the system for many years. But at least in public education you will get a pension (depending on the future economy); however, teachers working in the private sector are very unlikely to receive any pension unless they arrange it themselves.

[romanworld]

[romanworld]

More evidence that Taiwan is on its last legs and the government is on the verge of bankruptcy. The problem of course is an ageing population and an increased pension bill:

In a sign of the nation's growing financial woes, the public servant pension fund will run into a deficit for the first time this year, the Ministry of Civil Service (MOCS) said on Friday.

If the government does not take immediate actions to resolve the problem, the size of the fund will keep shrinking and jeopardize pension payments in the future, MOCS chief Chang Che-shen (張哲琛) said.

The pension fund, which is reserved for the nation's retired civil servants, military personnel and public school teachers, reportedly ran into deficit earlier this year.

As the government stalled on its pension reform efforts, inflow exceeded outflow in 2014 for the money pool reserved for school teachers and the armed forces, with the latter's fund posting a NT$3.8 billion shortfall. Local media said the deficiency began even earlier in 2011.

A balanced book for the pension fund is predicated on adequate reforms, but public workers should also contribute more capital to the fund, Chang said.

The MOCS chief suggested 15 percent of the salaries earned by schoolteachers and military personnel be channeled into the fund, before ultimately raising the amount to 18 percent over time.

Changing the Pension System Is Inevitable: Finance Ministry Chief

The Civil Service Ministry is not the only authority to point out Taiwan's pension problem.

Finance Minister Chang Sheng-ford (張盛和) said on Thursday that retired pubic servants receive more pay than they did before retiring. Pension reforms must be carried out, Chang stressed.

The finance chief referred to his wife's example. She currently receives a NT$68,000 monthly pension, higher than her NT$64,000 wage while she was employed as a junior high school teacher. "The nation's finance problem is shown through my wife," Chang said.

Further adding to the pressure is Taiwan's aging population. The pension system was set up at a time when life expectancy averaged 70 years, but today there are many people in their 80s, Chang pointed out, adding that "without reforms, the government is sure to go bankrupt."

The nation runs a hidden debt of NT$17 trillion, of which pensions make up the largest chunk, Chang said. Reducing hidden debts — which tallies all future pension payments — relies largely on fixing the retirement payment plan, Chang added. "Without changing the payment standard, who can afford it?"

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2015/09/05/445084/Govt-pension.htm

I like the way the Finance Minister uses his wife to illustrate the pension crisis in Taiwan. His comments must come across as deeply offensive to many hard-working Taiwanese who slave for long hours and earn a pittance for their efforts. The average salary in Taiwan currently stands at
NT$25,634 a month. No wonder so many Taiwanese are moving to China.

[TeacherTim]

No, in the case of the UK you just need to pay ten years worth of national insurance contributions to get the minimum pension. I have paid twenty-three years out of a maximum of thirty-five. The last ten years I have worked in Asia and paid the years owed by cheque. It's still a good deal but I will not get my pension until I'm 68 and this will likely rise to 70, so not brilliant.

[romanworld]

Education Minister Wu Se-hwa said Thursday that it is impossible for Taiwan to increase its budget for higher education in the short term and that universities have to think about how to solicit more funding themselves.

Wu noted that while other countries have been stepping up their investment in higher education, Taiwan has remained stable in this regard, meaning that there has been no increase in investment.

"The budget for education is fixed and cannot be increased in the short term," Wu said, urging the nation's universities "to tap new sources of funding themselves."

"The Ministry of Education will also think about how to solicit more resources to allow the continued development of the universities," he said.

Wu was speaking on the sidelines of a legislative hearing when he was asked about the global ranking of National Taiwan University by the Times Higher Education magazine falling 12 spots to 167th place this year, or the lowest in the world rankings in 12 years.

Phil Baty, an editor responsible for the rankings, said that Taiwan has traditionally had a strong university system, but needs more support from the government and more funding to help its universities stay competitive.

NTU President Yang Pan chyr said that different rankings are based on different indicators and that he will take them into consideration. He also expressed hope that the public will not judge the school by a single ranking.

He added that NTU is mainly constrained by the fact that its cooperation with industry is not as active as in some other countries, and said he will make more efforts in this regard.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2015/10/02/447332/Education-minister.htm

[romanworld]

It's not only serious teachers who are giving Taiwan a wide berth because of appallingly low salaries, but also domestic workers from SE Asia who are avoiding the place because of low pay and longer hours and additional demands being made upon them that aren't in the contract:

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2015/11/29/452153/Taiwan-faces.htm