Micron offers Taiwan workers up to 68 months of pay after strike signals
Micron said Friday its Taiwan direct-labor employees will receive fiscal-2026 rewards equal to 35 to 68 months of pay, with minimum cash of T$1.7 million.
Micron Technology, the U.S. memory-chip maker, told its Taiwan factory floor that fiscal-2026 rewards will be its strongest ever, equivalent to 35 to 68 months of pay for direct-labor employees, the company said Friday. The unions that had been preparing a strike have asked for a different kind of deal: a share of operating profit, paid quarterly from fiscal 2027.
Direct-labor employees, including operators, technicians, and shift engineers, will receive a fiscal-2026 performance bonus of up to 500% of the base target, extra stock awards counted at grant value, and a T$1 million ($31,653) cash bonus for Taiwan staff who joined before August 29, 2025. Taiwan bonuses had reportedly averaged about 2.6 months of salary under a plan capped near five months. The cash floor is T$1.7 million ($53,809) per covered worker. Entry-level engineers average T$3.4 million in total rewards, Micron said, including T$2.9 million in cash and the rest in equity at grant value, and more than 60,000 employees worldwide will receive fiscal-2026 awards.
For this year the two unions, representing about two-thirds of Micron's Taiwan workforce, had wanted a one-off they sized at about 83 months of salary. From fiscal 2027 they want the company's incentive plan replaced with quarterly bonuses equal to 15% of operating profit, citing profit-sharing at Samsung and SK hynix. Last quarter, the period ended May 28, Micron reported revenue of $41.46 billion and GAAP operating income of $33.3 billion. A first mediation with the Taoyuan union failed last week; a second round is scheduled. More than 80% of members who took part in an August survey backed a strike, the unions said. They did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on Friday's offer.
Micron employs about 15,000 people in Taoyuan and Taichung, with close to 10,000 union members. What the release does not say is how many of those staff count as direct labor. Without that headcount, the total bill is not in the announcement.
Taiwan is one of Micron's most important manufacturing hubs. DRAM and high-bandwidth memory are made there, and the people on those lines have not said they are standing down. A fund built around memory and high-bandwidth-memory names, the Roundhill Memory ETF DRAM, held Micron at 23.9% of assets through two swap positions as of Friday. The iShares Semiconductor ETF SOXX, which holds the 30 largest U.S.-listed chip stocks, listed Micron as its second-largest holding at 9.2%. Micron reports fiscal fourth-quarter results on Wednesday, September 30.
Frequently asked
What are the unions asking for instead?
They want the incentive plan replaced from fiscal 2027 with quarterly bonuses equal to 15% of operating profit, citing profit-sharing at Samsung and SK hynix.
Is a strike still possible?
A first mediation with the Taoyuan union failed and a second round is scheduled, and more than 80% of members who took part in an August survey backed a strike.
How much would the offer cost Micron?
The announcement doesn't say, because Micron did not disclose how many of its Taiwan staff count as direct labor.
Which ETFs have the most exposure to Micron?
The Roundhill Memory ETF held Micron at 23.9% of assets through two swap positions, and the iShares Semiconductor ETF listed it as its second-largest holding at 9.2%.