A significant 67% of employers in Singapore offered higher than anticipated salaries to woo new employees, new research reveals.

Morgan McKinley's  Salary Guide for 2023 shows 61% of employers have had to increase salaries to retain existing staff in the last year. 

According to the findings, 75% of employers in Singapore think that salaries in their specific sector will rise in 2023, with a third (33%) planning on increasing base salaries across all teams, despite a sharp focus on costs.

Just over half (51%) of Singaporean employees are expecting their salaries to increase this year, with 65% also expecting some form of bonus.

Sixty-four per cent of employees in Singapore are looking to move jobs in the first half of the year while 43% selected higher salary as the primary reason for wanting to move, followed by better career growth and development opportunities (18%).

Almost two-thirds (65%) of businesses plan to hire new permanent or contract employees in the next six months.

Gurj Sandhu, Managing Director of Morgan McKinley Singapore, said, "As our recent survey found, a significant portion of employees in Singapore is looking to move jobs in the next six months to increase their earning potential. Top talent with specific or specialist technical skills will always be in demand, and 2023 will be no different in that regard."

 According to him, Singapore's hiring market was bullish throughout 2022 due to an appetite for growth. This came as the economy opened up post-Covid-19, and companies sought to meet pent up demand to hire. 

He envisaged that recruitment is likely to be more subdued this year, with companies and professionals focusing more on stability as opposed to growth.

Sandhu further said there will be a slight recalibration of salaries. Whilst professionals will receive an uplift when moving externally, the increases are broadly not likely to be as significant as they were in 2022. 

"Attempts to retain staff via increments, alongside managing inflation, will also have an impact on the salaries of those not looking to move," he said.

The Morgan McKinley 2023 Salary Guide presents up-to-date salary data for a wide range of roles across Singapore, providing hiring managers with industry benchmarks when they are working out what to pay employees and giving professionals more visibility over what they can earn.

Research from businesses and professionals was conducted to find out what companies' hiring intentions are for 2023, whether there is an appetite to change jobs, and what the expectations are for movement on salaries.