Workplace reviews and discussion: 財團法人台灣經濟研究院

What I know is that this is the department with the smallest number in its name. During the interview, everyone seemed easy to get along with, but after joining, they were truly like two completely different people. It is well known for its high turnover, and other departments know this as well. Much of the information I gathered, along with the departure records I found, showed that people often left after around three months or even sooner. If the person interviewing you is a female supervisor, I would advise against joining unless you can accept the following principles.

1. You really like working and are willing to frequently “voluntarily work without compensation” after hours until midnight to do your part for the company, and to devote yourself to the company at irregular times on Saturdays and Sundays. My personal record was being “voluntarily” asked to contribute an additional 35 hours to the company in one week. One of my colleagues was “voluntarily” expected to work for the company until 2 a.m. at least twice a week on average. When I spoke with a senior employee upon leaving, they said this was a position based on a responsibility system. Supervisors also often work on weekends and late at night. When you mention overtime, she will say that overtime is caused by insufficient ability on your part, but former colleagues often worked late into the night.

2. You like receiving the base salary listed on 104’s official website plus NT$1,000 for each year of seniority, and can accept being subjected to educational bombardment every day during training. The intensity depends on the supervisor’s mood that day. This is an unavoidable path for everyone to develop stress tolerance. If you are bombarded during a meeting, it probably takes up about half the meeting.

3. You like a fulfilling life. Sometimes a text message that suddenly arrives at night will make your life so fulfilling that you cannot sleep, as you continue to do your part for the company’s future. This happens two or three times a month.

4. When getting vaccinated, you can only take an hour or half a day off. There are many annual leave days, but in practice you can probably take only about 1/10 to 3/10 of them. The supervisor has said that not being able to work is more painful than having a fever, but immediately took sick leave the following Monday morning after saying this.

5. You often take on different types of projects, but they frequently come up suddenly and need to be completed immediately, which is why overtime happens so often. These projects may involve industry research, events, finance, or even translation. Of course, you can learn many things, but you also have to spend your own time learning how to do them well. These projects usually do not bring in much money, and this is similarly reflected in the salary and benefits.

The advantages are that you do not have to wear formal attire, you can start work at 9:30 a.m., and there are snacks on Wednesdays.

The above may not necessarily apply to your unit. Some units are relaxed, pleasant, and allow you to leave work on time; in bad units, you will feel your life force rapidly draining away. However, at the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, I have heard that both the department with the largest number and the department with the smallest number are places that will speed up your journey into a coffin.