Taiwan's place at the top of the industrial food chain is being threatened by a brain drain as professionals head to China for better career prospects amid political turmoil and economic slowdown at home.
Taiwanese businesspeople have invested in tens of thousands of Chinese factories that provide white-collar jobs such as accounting, management, production planning and quality control to their compatriots.
Expanding demand in expertise in other fields -- notably asset management, business administration, research and development, marketing, medical sciences and aviation -- have also prompted more Taiwanese to try their luck in a place that for more than half a century has been the island's arch enemy.
According to 104 Corporation (104
The number of posts offered on the 104 site by companies in Greater China, which includes China, Hong Kong and Macao, was 8,000 last month.
"The applicants wish to position themselves in the huge, growing market. Those with experience look for career advancement and fresh graduates hope to develop their potential there," said Max Fang (
A sluggish domestic economy, coupled with political animosity, have accelerated the exodus of local industries to China, now Taiwan's leading overseas investment destination.
"Along with the industries went capital and talent. But in this global village, it is only natural that the rising giant is luring more money and brains from the rest of the world, especially Taiwan," said Soong Kuo-cheng (宋國誠), a researcher on Taiwan-China affairs at Chengchi University's Institute of International Relations.
"But the worst part of the brain drain is the flight of top-level researchers in biochemistry, medicine, computer science, DNA engineering and aviation materials," Soong said.
Language similarities and close historical and cultural bonds across the Taiwan Strait mean Taiwanese are at ease working there despite hostilities between the two governments, said Song.
Business and civilian exchanges have boomed in the past decade amid various liberalizations adopted by both sides.
Local businesspeople have channeled an estimated total of US$150 billion to China, which took some 41 percent of the island's total exports in the first 11 months of last year.
An estimated 1 million Taiwanese, or 4.3 percent of the island's population, are either working or living in China, according to the Mainland Affairs Council, which handles cross-strait civilian affairs.
Most are in fields related to manufacturing and business, but in recent years professionals in the service industry as well in cultural fields -- art, education, communications and entertainment -- also joined the gold rush.
Peking University last year hired three of Taiwan's top professors to teach at its Guanghua School of Management, funded by noted Taiwanese entrepreneur Yin Yan-liang (
Last month, 12 Taiwanese pilots, averaging 40 years old, followed eight colleagues to join China's Sichuan Airlines (四川航空), reportedly for higher pay and better benefits.
"Given the great demand in China's commercial aviation business, I really fear that more of our experienced pilots will move to [China]. Something must be done here to keep them home. Aviation skills cannot be trained overnight, you know," said a pilot who asked not to be identified.
In September, 23-year-old Zeng Yilun (曾怡綸) joined China's Shenzhen Airlines to become the first Taiwanese to serve as cabin chief with a Chinese airline, after working as a flight attendant for several other airliners there.
PROTECTIONISM: China hopes to help domestic chipmakers gain more market share while preparing local tech companies for the possibility of more US sanctions Beijing is stepping up pressure on Chinese companies to buy locally produced artificial intelligence (AI) chips instead of Nvidia Corp products, part of the nation’s effort to expand its semiconductor industry and counter US sanctions. Chinese regulators have been discouraging companies from purchasing Nvidia’s H20 chips, which are used to develop and run AI models, sources familiar with the matter said. The policy has taken the form of guidance rather than an outright ban, as Beijing wants to avoid handicapping its own AI start-ups and escalating tensions with the US, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the
Taipei is today suspending its US$2.5 trillion stock market as Super Typhoon Krathon approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed-income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Yesterday, schools and offices were closed in several cities and counties in southern and eastern Taiwan, including in the key industrial port city of Kaohsiung. Taiwan, which started canceling flights, ship sailings and some train services earlier this week, has wind and rain advisories in place for much of the island. It regularly experiences typhoons, and in July shut offices and schools as
Her white-gloved, waistcoated uniform impeccable, 22-year-old Hazuki Okuno boards a bullet train replica to rehearse the strict protocols behind the smooth operation of a Japanese institution turning 60 Tuesday. High-speed Shinkansen trains began running between Tokyo and Osaka on Oct. 1, 1964, heralding a new era for rail travel as Japan grew into an economic superpower after World War II. The service remains integral to the nation’s economy and way of life — so keeping it dazzlingly clean, punctual and accident-free is a serious job. At a 10-story, state-of-the-art staff training center, Okuno shouted from the window and signaled to imaginary colleagues, keeping
FALLING BEHIND: Samsung shares have declined more than 20 percent this year, as the world’s largest chipmaker struggles in key markets and plays catch-up to rival SK Hynix Samsung Electronics Co is laying off workers in Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand as part of a plan to reduce its global headcount by thousands of jobs, sources familiar with the situation said. The layoffs could affect about 10 percent of its workforces in those markets, although the numbers for each subsidiary might vary, said one of the sources, who asked not to be named because the matter is private. Job cuts are planned for other overseas subsidiaries and could reach 10 percent in certain markets, the source said. The South Korean company has about 147,000 in staff overseas, more than half