Concerning New Study Shows 54% of M’sians Think They are Unfairly Paid for Their Work

Human resource consulting firm, Randstand Malaysia conducted an online survey on 302 individuals who lived and worked in Malaysia between February and March 2023 to better understand the salary and bonus expectations of the current local job market.

The Randstad Salary and Bonus Expectations survey revealed some concerning numbers. Among the most worrying numbers in the study shows that 54% of Malaysians do not think they are being fairly paid for their work.

Randstad Malaysia’s Country Director, Fahad Naeem said in the survey report that “salary is a strong motivator to many Malaysians, it can also help them meet their financial goals, like buying a car or home, earlier in their lives”.

Knowing this, it is no surprise that the survey also discovered that 91% of Malaysians will change employers if offered a higher salary.

This fact is uphold as employees who did manage to change their jobs enjoyed a salary increase of 10-20% compared to their previous employment, suggesting that job-hopping may be an effective strategy to get a higher pay.

On the flip side, only 49% of Malaysians who stayed with their current employer received up to 5% of a salary increment while 39% of Malaysians were told their salaries will not be adjusted in 2023.

Furthermore 31% of Malaysians were informed that they will not receive any bonus for their work in 2022.

Fahad Naeem says that given these numbers, it would be helpful for Malaysians to leverage more on specialised resources like recruiters and proper salary calculators that use real-time data to form a more accurate view of their salary.

This is due to the survey revealing that 35% of Malaysians self-evaluate their average pay based on their job scope and responsibilities.

While the study highlights the potential benefits of job-hopping in terms of salary increases, it’s even more important for employers to promote job satisfaction and career growth to gain loyal, productive employees.

Do you think you’re paid fairly at your job? Let us know your thoughts on this study in the comments! 

Also Read: Study: M’sia is World’s 3rd Crony-Capitalist Nation, Billionaires’ Wealth Makes Up to 12% of Our GDP