In a move that has stunned the world, Evergreen Marine, a Taiwan-based shipping company has announced that it will be giving its 3100 workers a bonus of 10 to 11 months’ worth of salary for 2022. This comes after the massive 50-month bonus awarded to the workers last December, which means that each employee will receive around five years’ worth of pay in bonuses alone.
The bonuses will be distributed based on the individual performance of workers, as stated by Evergreen Marine. The yearly salaries at Evergreen can range from $29,545 to $114,823, according to the job website, Comparably. This massive payout will cost the company about $62 million (NT$1.92 billion), which is a drop in the bucket compared to their $10.9 billion profit for the financial year ending 2022.
Evergreen Marine’s remarkable success in 2022 can be attributed to a growing demand for consumer goods during the COVID-19 pandemic and rising geopolitical tensions. However, the good times for the company may soon be coming to an end, as Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Kenneth Loh and Eric Zhu warn that companies are looking for cheaper prices for shipping. They predict that an increasing number of clients will attempt to renegotiate their long-term contracts with Evergreen, which could potentially drive down long-term contract freight rates and hit the company’s profits.
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Despite the uncertain future, social media users in Taiwan responded to the news with one person expressing their envy for the employees of Evergreen Marine. The company has always been in the news for its operations, and its name was plastered all over the front pages of media outlets in 2021 when the container ship Ever Given blocked the Suez Canal for six days. This incident prevented hundreds of ships from passing through the critical shortcut through Egypt, meaning vessels had to either circle for days or make a long trip around Africa.
Conclusion
Evergreen Marine’s massive bonus payout to its workers is a rare feat that has stunned the world. The company’s success in 2022 was remarkable, but there is a cloud of uncertainty over its future due to increasing pressure from clients to renegotiate long-term contracts. Nonetheless, this news has put the spotlight on Evergreen Marine once again, and it is a reminder of the significant role that the shipping industry plays in the global economy.
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