Micron takes talent war to Korean, Taiwanese campuses with record bonus offer

Held recruitment session for Gachon University semiconductor students Tuesday

Korean employees at Taiwan unit joined to promote working conditions

Aggressive push into home turf of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix

13 campus recruitment events planned across Taiwan through next month

Record compensation package unveiled amid labor dispute over profit-sharing

Micron's facility in Taoyuan, Taiwan. [Reuters]

US chipmaker Micron Technology has been holding recruitment sessions at South Korean universities as it wages a talent war against Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, while also mounting an aggressive campus campaign across Taiwan to secure the engineers it needs.

According to industry sources, Micron held an online recruitment information session Tuesday targeting students in semiconductor-related departments at Gachon University.

Representatives from Micron's Taiwan subsidiary attended the event to introduce the company's key businesses, semiconductor technology and available job roles. Korean employees working at the Taiwan unit also participated, explaining the local work environment and career growth opportunities for engineers.

Micron's Taiwan subsidiary had previously visited Korea University, Seoul National University and Hanyang University in December 2025 to hold similar recruitment sessions — a sign that the company is pressing deeper into the home territory of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.

Micron has also announced 13 campus recruitment events across Taiwan, starting at National Taiwan University on Monday and running through next month.

With the memory chip industry in a period of exceptional growth, Micron — the world's third-largest memory chipmaker — is moving on all fronts to secure the talent it sees as critical to its future competitiveness.

Members of Micron's Taiwan labor union rally at the company's Taoyuan facility on Thursday (local time), demanding a fair profit-sharing system. [Reuters]

Micron operates factories in Taichung, Taoyuan and Tainan in Taiwan, and earlier this year acquired the factory of foundry firm PSMC in Miaoli County — about 20 minutes from its Taichung plant — rapidly expanding its production capacity, long considered a weak point.

The company plans to convert the PSMC facility into a cutting-edge DRAM production base and begin output in the second half of next year, meaning its workforce requirements are continuing to grow.

Micron's Taiwan subsidiary has drawn strong interest from the semiconductor industry and job seekers alike after announcing a record compensation package, even as it faces a labor dispute over profit-sharing.

The company announced Sept. 11 that production workers at its Taiwan operations would receive bonuses equivalent to 35 to 68 months of salary for fiscal year 2026. For new engineers, the proposed package averages about 2.9 million New Taiwan dollars ($90,000) in cash, or about 3.4 million New Taiwan dollars when stock is included.

However, the unions have rejected the offer and a final compensation agreement has yet to be reached. Unions in Taoyuan and Taichung are demanding that 15 percent of operating profit be institutionalized as a performance bonus.

Their argument is that Micron should overhaul its compensation system to match the level of its rivals — much as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix have adopted so-called "N percent of operating profit" bonus schemes that tie performance pay directly to company earnings.

Micron currently employs about 15,000 people in Taiwan. More than 70 percent of them are reported to have joined the unions in Taoyuan and Taichung.

A second round of mediation between the company and unions broke down Monday, and Micron is scheduled to hold a third mediation session with the Taichung union on Oct. 22.

joze@heraldcorp.com