Workplace reviews and discussion: 堤維西交通工業股份有限公司

Company name *: TYC Brother Industrial Co., Ltd.

Job title *: AM Development Engineer

Industry category *: Automobile and Parts Manufacturing

Work location *: Tainan Annan Science and Technology Industrial Park

Monthly salary *: 27,600

Relevant work experience *: 0

Highest educational qualification *: Private university of science and technology

Department: Department of Mechanical Engineering

Interview date:

January 2018

Other information:

Annual salary: 13 months

Working hours: 07:50–17:00

Year-end bonus: 1 month

Bonuses: Year-end bonus only

Job responsibilities:

1. Lamp development and certification 2. Establishing quality documents and specifications 3. Developing countermeasures for secondary parts-processing issues

Responsible for work related to automotive lamp development, from borrowing lamp assemblies from the original vehicle manufacturer and making molds in-house, to manufacturing at downstream mold-injection vendors, supervising and coordinating the manufacturers until full-scale production is achieved and specifications are met. AM refers to aftermarket lamp assemblies.

Impressions:

Working hours are 07:50–12:00 and 13:00–17:00. There are gift certificates for the three major holidays plus a year-end bonus. The owner determines the year-end bonus based on profits and pays 1–1.5 months. Labor, health, and group insurance are provided. Starting salary is based entirely on educational background; the starting salary for a private university of science and technology graduate is 27,600. However, although I had no relevant experience, my supervisor saw that I had two years of outside work experience and helped negotiate it up to 30,000. After a 3–6-month probationary period, there is a first salary adjustment of 3–7%, usually 3%. Salary adjustments are made only once every 3–5 years, with a fixed 3% each time. Salary includes 2,400 for meals. Lunch is subsidized by 30 yuan; if working overtime past 7:30 p.m., dinner is subsidized by 40 yuan. Overtime starts at 5:30 p.m.; the first two hours are paid at 1.33 times and the next two hours at 1.66 times. Overtime is limited to four hours per day, and no additional overtime is assigned beyond that. There are two days off every week, and Saturdays are mandatory days off (because no overtime pay would be provided, so employees are given the day off). Monthly overtime is capped at 48 hours in accordance with the Labor Standards Act. There is no training; you start working directly alongside senior colleagues. Because the workload is excessive and staff are understaffed, the pressure is very high and you need to adjust on your own. During the interview, there is an English multiple-choice test, reading, Chinese-to-English and English-to-Chinese translation, and questions on professional knowledge related to the position applied for. For example, an AM Development Engineer is tested on engineering graphics and orthographic views. There is also a psychological test. The interview includes many questions about on-the-spot reactions, how you prioritize when encountering problems, and how you complete tasks within a short time. A product takes only 4–6 months from processing to mass production, so you need strong on-the-spot reaction and communication skills for coordinating with on-site mold technicians. You need strong stress tolerance and should be thick-skinned enough to ask questions without embarrassment and learn as much as possible. The team leader decides whether to retain you based on your attitude and performance during the probationary period. You must be able to drive a manual-transmission vehicle. If the company truck is unavailable, you may need to drive your own car or motorcycle; expenses are reimbursed at 3 yuan per kilometer for a car and 1.5 yuan per kilometer for a motorcycle. The hiring decision is communicated within one week. If you are interested in joining but do not receive notification, call the personnel department after one week to inquire. They will ask about your family circumstances and address to assess whether you are in serious financial need, as well as for a one-minute self-introduction, among other things. They ask many complex questions to evaluate the interviewee’s on-the-spot reactions. Mold-processing plants range from Jiali and Shanhua in the north to Qieding in the south; you travel to downstream processing plants every day and occasionally go to Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung, and Lukang.

The salary adjustment is too small. After working for 20 years, a supervisor said it might only increase from 28K to 32K.