On a weekday evening, employees of a publicly listed company hold a meeting in an open office space. To retain talent, the company has introduced an employee stock trust plan, which allows employees to earn alongside the company when it profits. However, starting in 2026, such employees will have the opportunity to receive company profits, even if they do not purchase company stock.

According to a listed company employee named Terry, "If salaries are below 63,000, it will encourage companies to allocate some profits to lower-tier employees. My salary meets this standard, so I certainly have some expectations for future salary adjustments." According to the amendment to Article 14 of the Securities and Exchange Act, which will be completed in August 2024, listed and OTC companies must stipulate in their articles of association that a certain percentage of annual profits will be allocated for salary adjustments or profit sharing for 'lower-tier employees'.

The Financial Supervisory Commission has announced that all 1,874 listed companies in Taiwan must complete amendments to their articles of association before the 2025 shareholders' meeting, so that lower-tier employees can expect to benefit directly starting in 2026. Gao Jingping, Deputy Director of the Securities and Futures Bureau of the Financial Supervisory Commission, responded, "If a company has accumulated losses, it must first offset those losses. Only when there is profit will it be distributed according to the provisions of the articles."

The term 'lower-tier employees' refers to full-time employees of small and medium-sized enterprises who are not managers and whose salaries are below 63,000. The human resources department of a job bank anticipates that this policy could become a draw for talent. Senior Manager Jiang Jinhua from the job bank commented, "People will look at the profit-sharing ratios of more well-known listed companies, and this benchmark will likely influence some companies in terms of talent attraction."

Experts analyze that this policy directly targets lower-tier employees, preventing disproportionate gains for a few executives, and potentially raising Taiwan's overall salary competitiveness. However, the salary increase provisions in Article 14 of the Securities and Exchange Act lack corresponding penalties. The Financial Supervisory Commission indicates that if businesses fail to amend their articles regarding profit allocation as required, relevant entities will intervene with supervision.