Taipei (AFP) – Hundreds of workers at a Micron Technology plant in Taiwan have voted to strike, their union said Wednesday, after talks with the US memory chip giant over bonus reforms collapsed. Global chip companies, including Micron, have been major beneficiaries of soaring demand for artificial intelligence. But as their earnings skyrocket, many workers are demanding a bigger cut of profits.
Micron, which makes around 50-60 percent of its chips in Taiwan, has been locked in talks over remuneration with two labour unions representing 12,000 of 15,000 workers at its Taoyuan and Taichung plants. Members of the union in Taoyuan have “obtained the legal right to conduct a strike and establish strike picket lines,” union secretary Chen Yen-kai told a news conference. Of the 2,258 eligible union members at the Taoyuan plant, 2,012 cast ballots, with 1,994 voting in favour of strike action and 14 against, Chen said. Four ballots were invalid in the vote held over recent days.
Jerry Lin, head of the Taoyuan union, said the union has yet to set a strike date, but noted that a “surprise strike” could be called via text message to members. In the meantime, he urged Micron to present “a concrete proposal” following its board meeting scheduled for October 8 and 9 (US time) before the union “formally proceeds to a strike.” The Taichung union, which represents around 11,000 workers at the larger plant, told AFP its talks with Micron would continue as scheduled, despite the strike plan in Taoyuan.
The unions are seeking a one-off bonus of 83 months’ salary as well as a permanent system that allocates 15 percent of the company’s operating profits to worker bonuses, distributed quarterly rather than annually. “What we want is to establish an open and transparent profit-sharing system,” Lin said, rejecting the company’s one-off bonus, which he described as leaving employees “at the mercy of management.” Micron’s announcement last month that it would give the equivalent of up to 68 months of pay to staff was rejected by workers. The unions said the one-off payment was insufficient and “clearly lagging behind” its competitors.
Insatiable global appetite for the silicon components used in AI data centres — especially memory chips, which are in short supply — has sent revenues soaring for firms that design, produce and assemble them. The Micron unions’ demands follow recent labour disputes in South Korea, where Samsung Electronics averted a strike by agreeing to a deal to distribute bonuses equivalent to 10.5 percent of operating profit to its semiconductor employees. That agreement means around 78,000 employees from Samsung’s 125,000-strong domestic workforce are eligible to receive a bonus of roughly US$370,000 this year, based on a market estimate of profits.
Micron has also seen stellar financial results. The US company posted record revenue of around US$133 billion for fiscal 2026 — up 256 percent from US$37 billion the previous year. Micron has said more than NT$1.6 trillion ($50 billion) has been invested in Taiwan, describing the island as its “critical hub.”
© 2024 AFP
