Business

Published: Tuesday April 7, 2009 MYT 2:51:00 PM
Updated: Tuesday April 7, 2009 MYT 2:56:53 PM

Survey: Expected pay rise for Asians drop on global economic crisis


PETALING JAYA: The expected pay increases for Asians have dropped an average 40% from earlier estimates due to the global economic crisis, according to the ECA International’s Salary Trends Survey.

Both Hong Kong and Singapore saw 60% drop in the estimated salary pay increases this year while levels in China remained robust, falling only a third below earlier forecasts.

Salary increment for Asia Pacific would average 4.8% this year, or 30% lower than last year’s 6.9% increases, the survey showed.

Salaries in Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore had recorded the biggest downward adjustments with close to one third of Asia Pacific-based companies surveyed planning to postpone increment, ECA said in a press release today.

“Just six months ago, companies in Japan were forecasting that salaries would increase by a relatively healthy 2.8%, now half the companies we spoke to said they will be freezing pay,” it said.

Singaporean employees can expect increment of 2% versus 5% in 2008 and below regional average of 4.8% and almost two-thirds lower than initial forecasts. In Hong Kong, 36% of companies surveyed said salaries would be frozen.

Meanwhile, wage increases in India, Vietnam and Indonesia are expected to be among the highest at 10.8%, 10.6% and 9% respectively. Increment worlwide is anticipated to fall to an average of 4.7% from last year’s 6.2% as companies seek to reduce costs to tackle the economic crisis. The lowest increment will be in Japan, Lithuania and the Irish Republic.

ECA said the survey might “not be all bad news” given that inflation rates were now significantly lower compared with a year ago.

“In Singapore and Hong Kong, for example, current inflation is well below figures published six months ago. This means that real wage increases - the difference between actual salarg increases and inflation - may not differ significantly from last year,” it added.

ECA is involved in the development and provision of solutions for the management and assignment of employees around the world. In this latest survey, 120 multinational companies participated from over 50 countries.

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