Workforce faces modest salary hikes as a majority of firms limit raises to 3%

About 17.9% of employers anticipate maintaining the same salary levels.

Employers in Singapore are adopting more conservative approaches towards salary increases compared to the previous year. A significant portion of companies (33.0%) intend to increase salaries by up to 3%, whilst 37.7% plan to raise salaries by 3-6%.

“In the face of subdued economic growth forecasts for the upcoming year, employers and employees are bracing for the impact this will have on revenue and overhead,” Tom Osborne, managing director at Hays Southeast Asia said in the report.

“The crucial factor of success lies in how companies and their workplace navigate these challenges and ongoing skill shortages.” he added.

The percentage of employers expecting to give raises exceeding 6% has decreased compared to the previous year, according to 2024 Hays’ Asia Salary Guide.

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Only 17.9% of employers anticipate maintaining the same salary levels, which is slightly higher than the previous year's figure. There is also a decline in the proportion of employers planning to provide bonuses in 2024 compared to 2023 (64.2% in 2024 compared to 71.6% in 2023).

There has been a notable shift in employee salary expectations compared to the previous year. Expectations for salary increases above 10% have decreased significantly, from 20.6% to 9.4%.

Similarly, there is a dip in expectations for raises between 6% and 10%. On the other hand, expectations have increased for increments of up to 6%, as well as among those expecting no salary changes.

The percentage of employees expecting to take a pay cut has also decreased slightly. Most employers in Singapore anticipate maintaining permanent staff levels, with 30.1% expecting an increase. A smaller proportion (11.9%) plan to hire more contract staff in 2024.