
Talent Attraction and Retention
Talent Recruitment
ASEH and its subsidiaries employ a diverse and inclusive recruitment policy that prohibits discrimination against any employee or job applicant on the basis of gender, age, race, nationality, religion, political affiliation or sexual orientation. The company is committed to complying with local laws and regulations, upholding its Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, protecting and respecting human rights and adhering to the Responsible Business Alliance (“RBA”) Code of Conduct. ASEH forbids the use of child or forced labor and discourages recruitment agencies from collecting agency fees from foreign employees.
In 2021, ASEH recruited over 36,000 employees. Those under 30 years old accounted for 68.5%, of which 80.7% are skilled technical positions on the production lines. ASEH has also hired 121 persons with disabilities. Over 1,000 new foreign employees were hired this year. Our global and diverse talent recruitment policy has helped us improve the company’s global advantage and competitive capabilities, thus allowing us to meet the market needs of an increasingly diverse customer base. We believe that a workplace culture defined by diversity and inclusion, will allow employees to grow and develop mutual respect, resulting in a genuinely inclusive work environment. In 2021, our recruitment costs have increased significantly due to COVID-19. The average cost of recruiting an employee increased by 20% to US$644 compared with US$541 in 2020.
Employee Turnover
Employee turnover at ASEH was 19.0% in 2021, a 2.4% increase from the previous year. The increase in turnover was mainly attributed to factors such as remuneration, career growth, work environment, and personal reasons. The employee turnover rate at ASEH broken down into 57.3% male vs 42.7% female. In terms of job types, production line skill job position form the majority with 71%, while management, engineering and administrative positions formed the remaining 29%.
On a biannual basis, ASEH subsidiaries conduct employee engagement surveys to encourage feedback and opinion sharing from employees. ASEH also perform annual analyses on the causes of attrition for different job types so as to make corresponding improvements for increasing employee job satisfaction and talent retention rates. As a technology company, we apply big data analytics to identify underlying and correlating factors that affect turnover and extrapolate behavioral factors that contribute to talent attrition. The analysis combines other factors such as regional attributes and challenges, to identify talent retention risks and project potential employee turnover rates. A deeper understanding of the dynamics affecting turnover will help the company to formulate strategies to manage the risks for retaining talent. Meanwhile, for facilities with high turnover among new hires, various actions will be adopted to help employees adapt to their work environment and prevent the depletion of human capital.
Talent Retention
ASEH provides a conducive environment for employees to unleash their full potential to create innovative technologies or to demonstrate effective management skills. The growth of the company is strongly dependent on attracting and retaining talent.
Key Retention Strategy
- Highly Competitive Compensation and Benefits
- Fair and Comprehensive Performance Review
- Open Communication and a Grievance Mechanism
- A Multi-faceted Employee Engagement Survey
Compensation and Benefit Policy
ASEH provides competitive salaries and remuneration packages that consist of base salary, subsidies, employee cash bonuses and other compensation based on job responsibilities, academic qualifications, work experience and job performance etc. Employee remuneration is not determined based on factors such as gender, age, race, nationality, religion, political stance or gender orientation. In order to attract and retain talent, and reward performing employees, the company has established monthly incentive and annual profit-sharing bonuses.
Employee bonuses have increased from US$181 million in 2017 to US$578 million in 2021, an increase of nearly 200%. The an accumulated total of employee bonuses for the period amounted to US$1,616 million. In addition, employees with outstanding performance are awarded company stock options. The employee stock option program, which has a ten-year validity period from the date of issue, is aimed at retaining outstanding employees.
Performance Review
ASEH conducts a fair and equal performance appraisal of all employees across the board on a biannual/annually basis. The review involves management by objectives and performance ranking, a multifaceted evaluation, and equipment operator certificate reviews. Employees with poor performance ratings are offered employee counseling on a case-by-case basis by their managers, who are able to make adjustments to their roles and focus on individual performance.
Performance Appraisal
Evaluation | Object | Approaches |
---|---|---|
Ranking and Management by Objectives | All Employees | Work project targets and quantifiable performance indicators are presented by employees to their direct supervisors for discussion and confirmation before being set as preliminary targets. In 6 months/12 months, employees are required to present their self-evaluation to their supervisors, who shall assess their performance and determine if the performance targets have been reached. A final evaluation is made before all employees in each department are ranked according to their performance. |
Multidimensional Performance Appraisal | Management, Engineering and Administration Position Employees | After receiving MTP training, performance personnel will be interviewed by their direct supervisors and then jointly evaluated by cross-departmental supervisors, colleagues, and subordinates. |
Qualification ertificate Evaluation | Skill Job Position Employees | According to the various types of machine equipment at each station on the production line and the need to inspect products and resolve anomalies, qualified instructors are assigned to evaluate the performance of production line employees. |
Employee Communication
ASEH values and respects the opinions and rights of its employees. In an effort to promote open and transparent communication, the company has established comprehensive communication channels including unidirectional and bidirectional communication modes. As of the end of 2021, the total number of union members was 36,678, accounting for around 41% of all ASEH regular employees.
Employee Sustainability Engagement Surveys
Employees are ASEH’s most valuable asset and strategic to the company’s sustainability development and competitiveness. To enhance the workplace environment and gain better insights on employee experiences, we began conducting the Employee Engagement Survey every two years (since 2017) to understand our employees’ emotional attachment and professional commitment to their work, and the impact to the company. In 2021, we introduced a new survey framework that extended our focus to employee sustainability engagement. The engagement survey is now based on a 5-point scale, and we will aggregate the results of the total number of responses selected under ‘agree’ and ‘agree strongly’ on the scale. The scope of the engagement survey is now expanded to all three major subsidiaries covering direct and indirect employees at 26 facilities in 8 countries, accounting for 96.1 percent (81,479) of total employees surveyed.
The 2021 survey framework is segmented into employee experience indicators and employee engagement indicators towards the company. Under the employee experience indicators segment, there are 4 dimensions – purpose, people, work and total rewards, and 12 sub-categories customized according to direct and indirect employees across different job scopes. The employee engagement indicators segment comprise 3 dimensions – engagement, retention and ESG. Employees’ rating of the company’s ESG performance is a benchmark for measuring the effectiveness of ASEH’s overall ESG strategy and planning future developments. The results of the 2021 Survey indicated higher employee engagement levels in the sub-categories of organization, growth and fair rewards. Overall, the 2021 sustainability engagement survey recorded a score of 79%, exceeding the company’s target of >75%. The next Employee Sustainability Engagement Survey will be administered in 2023.