Given the current overall environment, FarEasTone really isn't that bad (I've been here for two years).

And surprisingly, they actually fully comply with the Labor Standards Act and the one fixed day off and one flexible rest day policy...

In a 30-day month, you'll get at least 8–10 days off—usually around 10. In certain months or at certain stores, it may be only eight days.

At ordinary stores, opening time is currently around noon. You only need to arrive at 11:30 a.m. to clock in and get ready.

The store closes at 9 p.m., and the clock-out time is 9:30 p.m. However, it depends on the situation at the time: you have to finish the closing work before you can leave. There is no overtime pay unless there are still customers inside the store after your clock-out time, in which case you may receive overtime pay. (Seriously, there are lots of idiots who crawl in after the security shutters are halfway down and act like morons.)

Starting pay seems to vary by region; I'm in Taipei City.

Base salary plus meal allowance is around NT$28,000. The rest consists of performance bonuses and overtime pay.

There is a NT$1,600 monthly phone allowance. (I haven't paid a phone bill since I started.)

The basic package is 14 months of base salary (including a two-month year-end bonus).

Performance is a major focus, so it's a good place to improve your sales talk and ability to deal with people.

It used to be very bleak, but things are better now. Still, it mainly depends on the store manager and coworkers.

Most people are actually pretty nice, though.

The salary sounds very attractive during the interview, but the actual job is definitely not that easy.

Whether it's easy to hit your targets depends on the individual. The environment also makes a difference—some stores are good and some are lousy—but there are still people who achieve excellent results even at lousy stores.

This is a sales-oriented line of work and does count as sales (you don't have to be out making calls for it to be sales). If you don't take it seriously or only want to collect the base salary, they'll find all kinds of ways to force you out. Anyone who treats it as just a game will probably resign voluntarily within two months.

Performance is calculated as a percentage. 70% is the minimum target; once you hit it, you receive 70% of the performance bonus. At 80%, you can receive the full amount, and the more you do, the more you get. At 110%, the bonus increases again.

For the first six months, new employees' performance is discounted. For example, the first month is calculated at 0.3 times, the second month at 0.5 times, and so on.

At the 0.5-times rate, if I sell NT$10,000 worth of products, I can receive 1%; you only need to sell NT$5,000 to receive 1%.

If you just want to try it out and have a certain level of ability, you might give it a try during the first six months. The bonuses actually aren't bad even then.

Without any discount, most people can reach over 80%, though there are also countless people who barely scrape by each month.

During interviews, managers always make it sound very appealing, talking about things like abundant promotion opportunities.

I have to tell everyone: that's not really the case. The veteran employees who are stronger than you are still waiting to claim those spots. Unless you're truly a genius or the top new recruit, don't expect to move up without spending several years at the bottom.

The next position above a regular employee is acting position holder. When the store manager isn't at the store, this person is in charge, but the pay isn't any higher.

Above the acting position holder is the store manager. But it's not a position you can simply get promoted to—you also have to beat out all kinds of strong competitors, and most importantly, there has to be an opening.

Right now, many veterans with five, six, or seven years—or even longer—are still holding onto these positions. The company is gradually phasing people out, but those veterans aren't pushovers either; they'll fight to hold onto their spots to the bitter end.

You can't really blame them, either. Think about how many years you've spent holding onto a comfortable position here (though it's actually pretty tiring), and then imagine being pushed out by people who haven't even been here for a few years. Of course you'd be pissed.

To sum up the salary: a regular employee earns around NT$29,000 without performance bonuses.

With the basic performance bonus, you can add around NT$6,000–8,000; if things go well, you can add around NT$11,000 more.

Overall, this job really isn't that bad. It's quite suitable for improving yourself, and you don't have to worry about being suddenly laid off (as long as you don't do things you shouldn't) and then being unable to make ends meet. But if you want to make big money, it's probably not the path for you unless you're exceptionally good.

That's all.