Workplace reviews and discussion: 耀際實業有限公司

The job basically involves riding a company motorcycle or car to various restaurants or establishments to carry out cockroach and rodent control.

Working hours are from 8:30 to 17:00, with a 1.5-hour lunch break. You clock in and out at the company.

You visit approximately 5–8 clients a day. For people with pest-control experience, this is not difficult, but because the employee turnover rate is so high,

you often end up taking over a mess (a cockroach infestation or severe rodent problem). Because the establishment’s pest-control results were poor, the person taking over

may get severely berated for problems left by the previous worker. Reporting the issue to management often gets you a response like, “You should figure out how to solve it yourself,”

or they assign a team leader or someone else to accompany you (although senior management is also just going through the motions and does not genuinely devote the effort needed to help resolve the problem).

Night work is defined as work after 5 p.m. For example, leaving at 5 p.m. to carry out pest control until 8 p.m. counts as overtime.

After finishing at 5 p.m., you may rest for 2–3 hours and then return to the company to carry out spraying work at 10 p.m.; this counts as a night shift.

Whether night shifts stay under seven days is a matter of luck. When there are staff shortages, plenty of people work more than ten days of night shifts.

After night work, you must take compensatory leave the following morning, meaning you only need to start work at noon the next day.

Currently, the company generally implements a two-day weekly rest system (national holidays in the same month are also days off) and uses flexible-hours scheduling.

In other words, you may be given two or three days off in a week (three if there happens to be a national holiday), but three consecutive days off cannot be scheduled.

Overtime is currently calculated according to the Labor Standards Act, but only based on the insured salary used for labor insurance contributions.

For example, if your insured salary is 22,500, the calculation is 22,500/240 × 1.33 or 1.66 (after two hours).

Because the “one fixed day off and one flexible rest day” system and national holidays are shifted, there is essentially no overtime pay for working on days off to claim.

Scheduling days off still depends on the work at hand—in other words, coordinating with clients, coworkers, and company operations.

For example, a supervisor may suddenly instruct you not to take the day off, a client may suddenly ask to change the appointment,

or a team leader or coworker may ask you to swap shifts. Often, if you do not show up, the work is simply left uncovered.

Pay consists of the basic salary + meal allowance + unexplained bonuses + overtime pay (if any; I heard they may change it to a position of responsibility system),

minus some employee-paid labor and health insurance contributions. Because the insured salary is low, the deduction is generally just over 1,000.

The actual calculation is 22,500 + 1,500 + 8,000 + 1,236 − 800 = 32,436 (this estimate is for reference only).

Monthly earnings are generally between 30,000 and 40,000. Only a small number of people earn over 40,000; you only get more money after being promoted or taking on a management position.

There is absolutely no system for promotions, taking on management positions, or salary increases; it entirely depends on the boss’s mood. Of course, on the surface, they will say there is a system.

The year-end bonus is also calculated based on the basic salary, multiplied by a performance ratio (also judged by the boss, between 0.5 and 1).

The actual year-end bonus received is approximately 11,250–22,500 (based on a basic salary of 22,500); if you have worked for less than a year, it is calculated proportionally by month.

Bonuses for the three traditional festivals are not guaranteed. They may consist of just one box of pastries for everyone to share, or cash ranging from 600 to 1,000.

Employee trips basically do not exist. If a job does not even allow you to take three consecutive days off, how could it offer an employee trip?

Department dinners only happen occasionally. However, if people eat too much, the boss may complain again, so some employees do not attend the dinners either.

What I find most ridiculous about this company is that its listing on 104 claims to provide comprehensive training.

The “comprehensive training” consists of applying to the company and being casually handed over to a senior employee or a colleague who is about to resign,

who trains you for 3–5 days and then lets you handle clients and pest control on your own (because turnover is so fast, no one is available to take over the area).

Then, inside the company, they claim to outsiders that you have three years of experience. Three days equals three years of experience—did you enter a time chamber?

In my view, pest-control work may seem easy to enter, but without 1–2 years of training, it is difficult to become fully competent.

The job basically involves riding a company motorcycle or car to various restaurants or establishments to carry out cockroach and rodent control.

Working hours are from 8:30 to 17:00, with a 1.5-hour lunch break. You clock in and out at the company.

You visit approximately 5–8 clients a day. For people with pest-control experience, this is not difficult, but because the employee turnover rate is so high,

you often end up taking over a mess (a cockroach infestation or severe rodent problem). Because the establishment’s pest-control results were poor, the person taking over

may get severely berated for problems left by the previous worker. Reporting the issue to management often gets you a response like, “You should figure out how to solve it yourself,”

or they assign a team leader or someone else to accompany you (although senior management is also just going through the motions and does not genuinely devote the effort needed to help resolve the problem).

Night work is defined as work after 5 p.m. For example, leaving at 5 p.m. to carry out pest control until 8 p.m. counts as overtime.

After finishing at 5 p.m., you may rest for 2–3 hours and then return to the company to carry out spraying work at 10 p.m.; this counts as a night shift.

Whether night shifts stay under seven days is a matter of luck. When there are staff shortages, plenty of people work more than ten days of night shifts.

After night work, you must take compensatory leave the following morning, meaning you only need to start work at noon the next day.

Currently, the company generally implements a two-day weekly rest system (national holidays in the same month are also days off) and uses flexible-hours scheduling.

In other words, you may be given two or three days off in a week (three if there happens to be a national holiday), but three consecutive days off cannot be scheduled.

Overtime is currently calculated according to the Labor Standards Act, but only based on the insured salary used for labor insurance contributions.

For example, if your insured salary is 22,500, the calculation is 22,500/240 × 1.33 or 1.66 (after two hours).

Because the “one fixed day off and one flexible rest day” system and national holidays are shifted, there is essentially no overtime pay for working on days off to claim.

Scheduling days off still depends on the work at hand—in other words, coordinating with clients, coworkers, and company operations.

For example, a supervisor may suddenly instruct you not to take the day off, a client may suddenly ask to change the appointment,

or a team leader or coworker may ask you to swap shifts. Often, if you do not show up, the work is simply left uncovered.

Pay consists of the basic salary + meal allowance + unexplained bonuses + overtime pay (if any; I heard they may change it to a position of responsibility system),

minus some employee-paid labor and health insurance contributions. Because the insured salary is low, the deduction is generally just over 1,000.

The actual calculation is 22,500 + 1,500 + 8,000 + 1,236 − 800 = 32,436 (this estimate is for reference only).

Monthly earnings are generally between 30,000 and 40,000. Only a small number of people earn over 40,000; you only get more money after being promoted or taking on a management position.

There is absolutely no system for promotions, taking on management positions, or salary increases; it entirely depends on the boss’s mood. Of course, on the surface, they will say there is a system.

The year-end bonus is also calculated based on the basic salary, multiplied by a performance ratio (also judged by the boss, between 0.5 and 1).

The actual year-end bonus received is approximately 11,250–22,500 (based on a basic salary of 22,500); if you have worked for less than a year, it is calculated proportionally by month.

Bonuses for the three traditional festivals are not guaranteed. They may consist of just one box of pastries for everyone to share, or cash ranging from 600 to 1,000.

Employee trips basically do not exist. If a job does not even allow you to take three consecutive days off, how could it offer an employee trip?

Department dinners only happen occasionally. However, if people eat too much, the boss may complain again, so some employees do not attend the dinners either.

What I find most ridiculous about this company is that its listing on 104 claims to provide comprehensive training.

The “comprehensive training” consists of applying to the company and being casually handed over to a senior employee or a colleague who is about to resign,

who trains you for 3–5 days and then lets you handle clients and pest control on your own (because turnover is so fast, no one is available to take over the area).

Then, inside the company, they claim to outsiders that you have three years of experience. Three days equals three years of experience—did you enter a time chamber?

In my view, pest-control work may seem easy to enter, but without 1–2 years of training, it is difficult to become fully competent.