Wages for first-time jobseekers with a college degree have fallen by roughly 10 percent over the past 13 years, according to a report by 104 Job Bank.
The report, released on Wednesday, says that between 2000 and 2013, the average wage for new jobseekers fell about 10 percent to about NT$30,000.
During the same period, consumer prices rose about 10 percent, the recruitment agency said. Rising consumer prices have prompted many employees to ask the government to rein in prices so living standards do not decline, it said.
The job bank analyzed the data of about 6 million clients aged 22 to 26 who used the agency over the 13-year period to calculate the drop in wages.
It found that during the financial crisis that occurred during the period, the average wage among young employees fell below NT$30,000 at one point.
After the crisis eased, many of those who had seen their wages drop did not see them rebound to pre-crisis levels, although semiconductor engineers and software designers did, the agency said.
The 104 Job Bank report corresponds to a recent government survey, which found that the real average overall wage after adjustment for inflation stood at NT$44,739 last year, compared with the real average wage of NT$44,798 in 1998.
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