Singapore finance professionals to see dismal salary increases in 2016: survey

Wages of 7 in 10 workers will stay the same.

Majority of Singapore professionals in finance and accounting, technology, and banking sectors are going to see dismal salary increases in 2016.

According to recruitment firm Robert Half’s 2016 Salary Guide, wages of over 7 in 10 (72%) employees will stay the same or increase between 1 and 5%. Only about one in five (21%) jobs will see an increase of between 6 and 9%, while only 7% can look forward to pay hikes of 10% or more.

“Singapore’s employment market is still active with many firms making hires to replace staff who have left and to expand their headcount. However, hiring activity is not driving up salaries the way it has in previous years,” commented David Jones, Robert Half’s senior managing director for Asia Pacific.

“Where increases above 5% occur, it is usually for more specialised roles where the number of potential candidates are fewer,” Jones adds.

Meanwhile, three in five (60%) Singapore professionals in the finance and accounting sector can look forward to an increase of more than 5%.

More than half (55%) of technology professionals can expect salaries to stay the same or to increase between 1 to 5%. Further, technology professionals are the most likely to see wage growth as Singapore companies respond to technological change.

Salaries within the banking and financial sector are expected to be the most flat of the three industries covered in the salary guide. Mirroring weaker hiring activity in bank across the globe, salary increases on offer for Singapore professionals are seen to be 5% or less for a whopping 96% of employees.

Moreover, there has been a notable shift in factors driving pay hikes in the country. Business leaders cite a lack of specialist skills and experience as their chief difficulty in acquiring talent this year, as opposed to previous years when a dearth of supply was instead the biggest hurdle.