Micron announces record compensation amid Taiwan labor disputes

Micron Technology has announced its highest-ever employee compensation package for fiscal year 2026, driven by the surge in demand for AI-related memory chips like High Bandwidth Memory (HBM). The company plans to reward over 60,000 employees globally.

In Taiwan, where Micron employs approximately 15,000 people, production staff will receive total compensation equivalent to 35 to 68 months of salary. Employees hired before August 29, 2025, will receive a special cash bonus of 1 million TWD. Entry-level engineers in Taiwan are expected to see average total compensation of 3.4 million TWD, including stock rewards.

Despite these record bonuses, Micron faces ongoing labor disputes in Taiwan. Unions representing workers in Taoyuan and Taichung have expressed dissatisfaction with the transparency of the Incentive Pay Plan (IPP), arguing that current bonus structures do not sufficiently reflect the company's high profitability compared to competitors like Samsung and SK hynix. Approximately 80% of union members have expressed support for a strike. A second round of labor mediation is scheduled for September 21 to address demands for a more transparent bonus system based on operating profit.