Wages in the private sector last year rose by an annual 3.82 percent to NT$584,583 (US$18,879) on average, according to a “big data” analysis commissioned by the Executive Yuan and released on Wednesday.
The study analyzed 4.84 million samples of wage data supplied by the ministries of labor and finance for a three-year period beginning in 2011.
Over the period, 22 percent to 41 percent of private sector employees who held the same job for at least two years saw a drop in earnings, while 18 percent to 29 percent saw wage hikes of more than 10 percent, the data showed.
Between 2013 and last year, there was a decrease in wages among 22.84 percent of private sector workers who had held the same job for at least two years, while 7.83 percent had no change in pay, the data showed.
According to the analysis, more than 65 percent of the workforce earns less than NT$550,000 annually.
The big data study allows the government to more accurately assess private sector wage growth and reduces reliance on annual reports by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics, Executive Yuan spokesman Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群) said.
Using the data analysis, the government can also devise appropriate policies to stimulate the weakest-performing sectors in terms of wage growth, Sun said.
He said wage increases in the private sector are one of the factors used by the government to determine whether a public sector pay hike is needed. Other factors include the government’s available funds and economic growth.
The government believes that a pay hike in the public sector would spur a wage increase in the private sector, Sun said.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) in April said that a 3 percent hike for civil servants would bring positive results, based on precedent.
The Executive Yuan in April said that a bill to raise wages and pensions of about 820,000 public sector employees by 3 percent at a cost of about NT$11 billion would be reviewed by the legislature.
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