AI chip boom drives huge bonuses at Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix

Micron Technology announced large fiscal 2026 rewards for its workforce, citing strong demand for memory used in AI data centres. The company said direct labour employees in Taiwan will receive bonuses equivalent to 35 to 68 months of pay, with a minimum cash payout of NT$1.7 million. Micron reported more than 60,000 employees globally will receive the fiscal 2026 rewards and that its Taiwanese workforce of about 15,000 will get an additional NT$1 million cash bonus if they joined before Aug. 29, 2025. For entry-level engineers in Taiwan, Micron cited average total rewards of about NT$3.4 million, including roughly NT$2.9 million in cash and the remainder as equity at grant value. The company said every employee will receive an annual equity grant and that it has invested more than NT$1.6 trillion in Taiwan.

Samsung Electronics reached a government-mediated settlement after a months-long dispute that risked a strike involving more than 45,000 workers who had warned of action from May 21. Under the agreement, chip workers will receive a regular cash bonus equal to 50% of annual salary, and Samsung will set aside 10.5% of operating profit for special bonuses in stock. Of that special pool, 40% will be distributed across the entire chip business and the remainder directed to memory employees. Industry calculations indicate a memory-chip worker with an annual base salary of ₩80 million could receive total bonuses of about ₩626 million this year.

SK Hynix reached a tentative wage and bonus deal after talks over a proposal to shift more payouts into stock. The agreement provides 40% of bonuses in cash, 40% in stock that can be sold immediately, and 20% as deferred stock paid half after one year and half after two years. The deal also includes a 6.3% base-wage increase and a clause allowing the company to defer up to 3% of wages if it records losses. SK Hynix estimates employees could earn more than ₩700 million if the company meets an annual profit target of ₩250 trillion.

South Korea’s central bank flagged unusually large performance bonuses in its June report and noted that nominal GDP rose 21.9% in the first half of 2026 from a year earlier, with higher semiconductor export prices accounting for much of the increase. Park Jong-woo, deputy governor of the Bank of Korea, said, “The recent surge in nominal growth is something we haven’t experienced since the high-growth era of the 1970s.” Kim Jong-hwa, a member of the Monetary Policy Board, said officials must judge “the timing and pace of additional rate increases while monitoring changes in domestic and external conditions.” The bank also warned that large special payouts could raise household incomes and spread wage growth beyond the tech sector.

In Taiwan, unions representing roughly two-thirds of Micron’s workforce signalled broad support for strike action, and two unions covering about 10,000 workers at Micron’s Taoyuan and Taichung sites have sought changes to the company’s bonus structure. The central bank said large bonuses could increase demand for housing around Seoul, including Dongtan District and Yongin in Gyeonggi province.