財團法人台灣經濟研究院

There may be opportunities to participate in APEC meetings and gain a better understanding of how international organizations operate.

1. No one dares to submit overtime applications or request compensatory time off.

2. Everything in the unit always revolves around a few of the supervisor’s close friends.

3. It appears very open-minded on the surface, but in practice it is very authoritarian.

4. Since the current supervisor took office, more than 10 people have left in total, yet the supervisor never reflects on themselves; after all, they can just hire new people.

5. Interns are occasionally recruited through events, and then asked to take on some of the workload. When problems arise, they are treated as the responsibility of full-time colleagues.

6. For overseas business trips, unless activities are scheduled on a holiday, only the flight time is counted, and overtime cannot be claimed.

If you want to experience life, come give it a try!

I interviewed at the number-one institute.

I thought about coming here.

Director Chen seems really incompetent and very individualistic in the way he does things.

He must be very strong at research, I guess, because he fundamentally doesn’t understand respect between people.

There’s an 80% chance you’ll be treated like a slave once you join, unless you absolutely love his field. Otherwise, there’s no need to put yourself through working under him.

Wednesday afternoon tea; compliant with the Labor Standards Act

As the previous poster stated, the work is very much based on a responsibility system. The bonuses received do not necessarily make up for the overtime hours. The supervisors basically do not take responsibility; they delegate everything to their subordinates and push the blame downward when something goes wrong. Their emotional management is also highly problematic. I don't know how things are at the other institutes, but this is the most bureaucratic and politically charged workplace I have ever encountered. If you want to experience working crazy amounts of overtime and having every move you make whispered about behind your back, you can apply.

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.

Paid leave is better than the industry average. Free afternoon tea is provided every Wednesday, and there are many clubs with generous subsidies. Colleagues do not engage in infighting. If you join the right department, you generally will not need to work overtime, and performance bonuses are also better than the industry average.

1. Facilities: Wi-Fi stability is poor; there are too few restrooms and meeting rooms; equipment such as water dispensers, telephones, and office desks and chairs is old; cigarette smoke drifts from the rooftop to every floor; and the stairways are very narrow, which may affect evacuation. The cleaning staff are not diligent.

2. Compensation: Salary offers are primarily based on educational background, so those planning to stay long term need to consider the possibility of pursuing further education. Overtime pay is very difficult to claim.

3. Personnel: There is no evaluation mechanism for people in management positions, making it impossible to remove unsuitable senior executives.

4. You must join the right institute and the right department.

None

1. Low pay, lots of work, and a difficult boss

2. Working overtime every day without overtime pay

3. The boss does not provide severance pay

4. Forced to sign a voluntary resignation

None

1. It is sadly true that without a degree, your salary will be low. This is especially the case for research assistants: they do work similar to that of research assistants with master's degrees, but their pay is considerably lower.

2. Overtime is the norm, but there is no overtime pay. The latest record was working overtime until nearly 3 a.m.

3. Severe internal workplace infighting.

4. A strong bureaucratic atmosphere.

5. The introduction of new systems is not transparent.

Stable. The company benefits are good.

Basically, you work regular hours. Overtime may be required when projects are busy, but this is uncommon in my department.

There are lots of holidays, and taking leave is not difficult.

Assistant salaries start at 26K, with an annual raise of only 700.

The performance bonuses are good, but the evaluation criteria are unclear.

They place a strong emphasis on educational background. Without a degree, there are few opportunities for advancement.

Salary is paid on time, and the month's salary is paid on the first of every month.

The resources are quite sufficient. You can get whatever you need, so you can go to work empty-handed and find everything there.

The manager has an extremely bad temper and will yell at people until they cry over the slightest thing, while giving newcomers absolutely no time to adjust.

Working overtime until at least eight or nine every day is normal. The record is working overtime until 1 a.m.; no one dares to leave.

You can see the overtime pay, but you can't receive it unless you personally go around getting signatures from each manager at every level.

So although the benefits look excellent, in reality, there are only limited benefits you can actually use.

1. The interview process is relatively relaxed and not formal, and you can gain a lot of information through conversations with the supervisors.

2. Three people interviewed me. They openly discussed things with one another, so I could take the opportunity to resolve their concerns about me.

3. They explained the job responsibilities as thoroughly as possible, so there was no situation where “I didn’t know what the actual job involved.”

4. For a master’s graduate with no experience, the starting salary is 38K. Overtime is required, but there is no overtime pay; there are bonuses.

1. There is no overtime pay, which violates the Labor Standards Act.

2. The supervisor has a worse temper when under a lot of pressure.

3. There are Americans on site, so the interview must be conducted in English.

None

Interview position: Research Assistant

Because the overall impression was not very favorable, I have listed everything under cons. My general interview impressions are as follows:

<1> The base salary for assistant positions is always 25K, at most 26K, completely disregarding the interviewee’s relevant prior experience.

<2> Overtime is the norm, and employees are expected to take on multiple roles.

<3> The company has quite a few projects related to the position I applied for, so its revenue is good. The interviewer said the year-end bonus + performance bonus should amount to 2–4 months’ salary. But both types of bonuses are paid in two installments, so you have to stay past April each year to receive the full bonus.

<4> The bureaucratic atmosphere is very strong. Turnover among assistants is high, but after speaking with people from other companies in the same industry, I learned that they generally do not proactively fire employees. Therefore, those who can tolerate this kind of bureaucratic environment will probably stay for a long time.

The happiest time is when receiving the bonus.

The work involves executing government projects. There is insufficient staffing, and employees are expected to take responsibility for completing the work, so overtime on weekdays and weekends is frequent.