TSMC talent shortage threatens its global leading edge: US media

TSMC talent shortage threatens its global leading edge: US media

2023-05-15

Taiwan’s semiconductor behemoth TSMC is facing a serious talent shortage, which could threaten its leading edge in the industry, according to the New York Times. The report says that, over the past decade, its employee head count has grown almost 70%, but Taiwan’s birthrate has plummeted. Over the same period, the number of people with master’s and doctorate degrees have also plummeted, by 12% and 20% respectively. The article says there is not enough talent to meet demand, especially as young people may not be keen on TSMC’s demanding work culture.

TSMC’s business may be booming, but it could soon face a labor crisis. The New York Times has published a report titled: “Taiwan Is Running Low on a Strategic Asset: Engineers.” It says that a talent shortage could affect TSMC’s global lead. The report says TSMC has continued to expand its production capacity, with its number of employees increasing by nearly 70% in the past 10 years. In that same time, Taiwan’s birthrate has halved.

Liu Pei-chen
Taiwan Industry Economics Services
Despite a trend of a declining birth rate, and a decline year by year of those who specialize in science and engineering, TSMC still has more pull than small-and-medium-sized enterprises, which are more worried.

Taiwan has seen negative population growth for three consecutive years. According to statistics from the interior ministry, a decade ago there were 200,000 births per year. Last year, there were only 139,000 in a historic low. In terms of talents in science and engineering, there were 82,000 graduates with relevant skills in 2012 and only 65,000 in 2020, a drop of 20%. Master’s and Ph.D. students have also dropped 12% and 20% respectively. In addition to Taiwan’s declining birthrate, the company faces massive poaching from international companies. Working conditions are also a key factor.

Yang Tsung-pin
Job bank spokesperson
The tech industry gives a kind of salary that’s on a Taiwan level. Multinationals use global salaries to lure away talent. The pay is several times higher than in Taiwan. The entire tech industry here needs to be on call any time. I joke that new tech hires with high status will tangibly be much wealthier, but your health is also wealth and this may not necessarily increase as well.

The government in 2021 set up four semiconductor colleges, with hopes of strengthening educational resources for this industry. Companies are also cooperating with universities to launch internships, hoping to grab outstanding talents as soon as possible. After all, the chip industry is receiving unprecedented attention worldwide, so talent cultivation for Taiwan is a race against time.