Workplace reviews and discussion: 嘉鴻遊艇股份有限公司

The only advantages are paid annual leave, a five-day workweek, year-end bonuses, bonuses and gifts for the three major holidays, domestic travel, overseas travel, and performance bonuses.

This company does not respect the Labor Standards Act. There are also problems involving workplace safety, bullying, and sexual harassment.

When I first joined the company, because I was an “apprentice,” my salary was only NT$20,000. I was told it would later be adjusted based on my learning ability. However, almost no one provides instruction during the learning process; you are expected to learn independently.

Although the position is for a woodworking technician, most of the actual work involves installing hardware and equipment such as blowers, rope winches, and anchor winches—things that are almost entirely unrelated to woodworking.

Every day, you need to monitor the yacht’s progress and incoming materials yourself and determine that day’s construction tasks. Working here can develop your ability to do the work of three people, because work assignments are based on efficiency. The more efficient you are, the heavier your workload becomes. It took two years with the company for my salary to increase from NT$20,000 to NT$29,000, and I then endured another three years before reaching NT$49,800.

Regular working hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., but overtime until 8:30 p.m. is routine (sometimes you may have to work until 10:00 p.m. or even later). You basically also have to come in for overtime on Saturdays.

Every six months, if the company reaches its boat-launching target, there is a bonus.

The work environment is filled with fiberglass dust and the smell of spray paint, acetone, and resin.

Most coworkers are uncultured thugs, “8+9s,” and migrant workers.

When I was an apprentice, some malicious veteran workers would deliberately teach apprentices incorrect concepts or dangerous practices, then pretend not to know anything if an accident occurred.

Veteran workers are afraid of newcomers learning. Coworkers often lie, spread rumors, distort right and wrong, and engage in sexual harassment (for example, squeezing nipples or flicking genitals). They also frequently raise their voices, randomly curse at people, threaten others, and even steal things and frame other people for it.

Supervisors often make things difficult in every possible way. In addition to pestering you about work progress every day, they occasionally propose incorrect construction methods and add requirements to the work orders to increase the difficulty. When materials are out of stock, they pressure you about progress or make a series of unreasonable demands, but provide no assistance whatsoever.

There was even one time when they arbitrarily deducted my wages without giving a reason.

Finally, when I resigned, the supervisor even taunted me, saying that the company would never hire me again and that there were plenty of people outside lining up to fight for the job.