00:00Chipped giant TSMC's stocks are soaring, a boost to Taiwan's GDP.
00:05But also, one reason the gender pay gap is growing in the country.
00:09This year, Equal Pay Day is on the 59th day of 2026, one day later than last year, marking
00:16each extra day women need to work to reach the same annual salary as men.
00:22That means men only need to start working on February 28th to earn the same salary as
00:27a woman would in a full year.
00:36In 2025, women earned an average equivalent of 11 U.S. dollars per hour, while men earned
00:44about 13 U.S. dollars, marking an overall gender pay gap of 16 percent last year.
00:51In the technology industry, the gap surpassed 42 percent.
00:54The labor ministry says if the tech industry was excluded, the overall gender pay gap would
01:00drop to around 10 percent.
01:02Women's groups say government policies to address the gap must specifically target this industry,
01:08where high-paying roles are disproportionately held by men.
01:11They say that education should be the starting point to encourage more women to pursue STEM-related
01:16fields.
01:33And while people in Taipei acknowledge the issue, not everyone knows just how wide the gap actually is.
01:40Because I was in a skilled fund company by the company.
01:44I have a member of a company.
01:44My experience is like from before and before.
01:48I don't know if there is a plan.
01:52Even after planning, or the money is paid for money.
01:56Now the company is not able to talk about the money
02:00We can't talk about the money
02:04So we don't know how much money is going to be able to help the family
02:07Maybe because the women still need to help the family
02:10So the amount of time will be paid
02:12Or the company will feel that the women's time
02:16If they don't have a lot of time in the work
02:19But we need to help the women to help the family
02:22To help the family
02:27The tax sector is driving Taiwan's economy
02:31But gender imbalances within the industry
02:33Are shaping the country's overall wage disparities
02:36As Taiwan further solidifies its position as a global technology leader
02:41Gender advocates hope competitiveness and equality can advance together
02:46Heng Xu and Lily Lamantina for Taiwan Plus
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