Average monthly wages in July advanced 3.52 percent to NT$44,413 (US$1,428.62) from a year earlier, while total wages, including overtime and commission-based compensation, gained 5.4 percent to NT$58,355, as local firms posted robust earnings, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday.
In the first seven months of the year, regular wages grew 3.1 percent to NT$44,286 a month, the best showing in 22 years, but lagged behind inflation, which rose 3.17 percent during the same period, DGBAS Census Department Deputy Director Chen Hui-hsin (陳惠欣) said.
As a result, real wages contracted, Chen said.
Photo: CNA
Real wages have gained heavy media attention these days as people have generally felt the pinch amid sharp increases in food and retail prices.
The basic wage increase this year and next year would provide no remedy, as they mainly benefit entry-level workers.
Employers are not obligated to raise wages for workers with higher pay.
Chen said pay contraction is narrowing and might swing into positive territory if inflationary pressures ease.
The increase in consumer prices already fell below 3 percent last month, boding well for purchasing power gauges, if the trend is sustained, she said.
However, most companies are looking at business and profit declines in the coming six to 12 months, which is unfavorable to the wage outlook, as inflation and global monetary tightening constrain demand for goods and services, Chen said.
It remains to be seen how things would pan out, she said, adding that it would depend on changes in the global economic scene.
The number of workers hired by the industrial and service sectors edged up 0.45 percent in July, the statistics agency found.
That suggested an addition of 36,000 people to payrolls, as retailers and restaurants benefited from the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, Chen said.
Wholesale and retail businesses hired 13,000 more workers in July, while restaurants and hotels added 12,000 people, DGBAS data showed.
The accession rate — the number of new employees added to payrolls — rose 0.72 percentage points from one month earlier to 3.07 percent, which was consistent with the hiring activity, the agency said.
The trend also had much to do with the entry of new graduates, Chen said.
At the same time, the exit rate increased by 0.28 percentage points to 2.62 percent.
COVID-19 cases have climbed steeply again this month, but authorities are pressing ahead with the strategy of living with the virus, which should help mitigate the impact on the job market, Chen said.
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