According to the 2019 Hays Asia Salary Guide, Malaysian employees can expect more generous salary raises compared to their counterparts across Asia this year. Nearly half (48 per cent) of Malaysian employees could get above-average salary increments. Employers predict that their employees’ salaries are likely to increase by more than 3 per cent but less than 6 per cent.
The 2019 edition of Hays’ Salary Guide indicated that local employers have a more positive perception of their business outlook and salary increments this year. It was reported that 62 per cent of local companies have increased business activity in 2018, while 72 per cent of them predict more business activity in 2019.
Source: HRD
On top of that, 63 per cent of local companies guarantee bonuses to all their employees in 2019. However, this is a slight drop compared to the 65 per cent of employers in 2018.
On the employees’ side, 55 per cent of Malaysian employees interviewed reported that they were satisfied with their current salaries, 17 per cent higher than what was reported in 2018. Tom Osborne, Managing Director of Hays Malaysia, was quoted as saying,
“It is clear that while positivity surrounding salaries is up, there is still room for improvement.”
“With more and more employees leaving mostly due to the allure of better salary or benefit packages, companies looking to retain valuable employees should work on improving satisfaction rates where remuneration is concerned.”
A large portion of Malaysian employees (60 per cent) also cited salary as the key reason for seeking new jobs, and it was also the main reason they would stay with their current employers.
Source: Workopolis
Meanwhile, 87 per cent of employers in Malaysia are offering benefits in addition to financial incentives to their employees this year. While this percentage declined compared to 93 per cent in 2018, the number still remains high. Some of the most common benefits are;
- Health and medical (84%)
- Car or car allowance (51%)
- Life assurance (40%)
In terms of talent, Hays found that a significant proportion of employers (94 per cent) is concerned about skill shortages affecting their operations. The report found the following areas in which employers found the most difficulty in recruiting skilled employees;
- Accountancy and finance: middle management
- Sales: entry level up to middle management
- Sales: middle management
- IT: middle management
- Operations: middle management level
- IT: entry level up to middle management
Read the 2019 Hays Asia Salary Guide here to find out more.
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