Taiwan president urges Micron, unions to resolve bonus dispute

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has urged Micron Technology (MU) and its workers to negotiate in good faith to avert a potential strike, as a dispute over employee bonuses raises labor risks at a key production hub for memory chips used in AI.

Speaking Thursday at the opening of Micron's (MU) new advanced assembly and testing facility in Taichung, Lai called for stronger communication between labor and management.

He also expressed support for Micron's (MU) continued investment in Taiwan and its HBM research and development.

“We also hope both labour and management will uphold the spirit that fish need water and water needs fish, continuing to negotiate sincerely and in good faith to build the broadest possible consensus,” Lai said.

The dispute centers on workers’ bonuses, with the union seeking a permanent profit-sharing scheme that allocates 15% of the company's operating profit to employees. Micron’s (MU) Taoyuan union secured strike authorization last week, with 1,994 of 2,012 voting members backing the action.

Mediation with the Taoyuan union ended without an agreement in September, while negotiations with the Taichung union remain ongoing. The union rejected Micron’s fiscal 2026 rewards package as insufficient to address its demand for a permanent arrangement. No strike date has been set.

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