Taipei, March 10 (CNA) Regular pay in January averaged NT$44,369 (US$1,573), up 0.89 percent from December 2021 and 2.91 percent year-on-year, the Cabinet-level Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics reported (DGBAS) Thursday.
The 0.89 percent monthly growth was the highest since July last year, but despite a widespread salary pay raise in January, the real annual increase was only 0.06 percent after deducting the 2.84 percent rise in the consumer price index, said Chen Hui-hsin (陳惠欣), deputy director of the DGBAS' Department of Census.
By profession, the securities/financial sector saw the largest hike in average regular salaries of 4.78 percent, followed by 3.39 percent in the air cargo transport industry and 3.12 percent in the marine transport sector, DGBAS data showed.
Meanwhile, irregular earnings in January were NT$64,527, which combined with regular pay of NT$44,369 means combined earnings of NT$108,896 in the month.
The nearly NY$110,000 average income represents an increase of 51.26 percent from a year earlier, which Chen ascribed to annual and performance bonuses usually being paid in late January or early February with the arrival of the Lunar New Year holiday.
However, irregular earnings in January varied from industry to industry, Chen noted.
The financial sector posted the highest level of irregular earnings with NT$213,000 in January, followed by the telecommunications sector with 177,000, air cargo transport with NT$169,000 and marine transport with NT$165,000, she said.
As of the end of January, 8.17 million people were employed in the industrial and services sectors, a decrease of 3,000 from December but an increase of 3,000 over the previous year, DGBAS data indicated.
