The median base salary in Singapore is expected to rise 4.7 per cent in 2017, after factoring in disinflation, higher than the 3.7 per cent increase this year, said a report by Korn Ferry Hay Group yesterday.
This would be ahead of Asia's real wage growth of 4.3 per cent next year.
The higher-wage projection comes even as Singapore's economy is projected to be sluggish next year, with most companies expecting only modest growth, the study said, noting that the country still has a talent retention challenge.
SALARY INCREMENT
"Despite the negative outlook for next year, our recent market reward survey of over 400 companies reveals that more than three quarters of employers in Singapore are still likely to implement salary increment to their employees," the study said.
Singapore is still dealing with the tightening of foreign-labour policies and a lack of expertise at junior to middle levels, said Mr Stephen Choo, senior client partner and country head of global productised services at Korn Ferry Hay Group Singapore.
Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank said in a report this week that the Singapore economy could expand 2.3 per cent year on year next year, with a further rise to 3 per cent in 2018.
Still, it cautioned that "such a growth increment (is) hardly any reason to cheer about", given the country's steady deceleration over the last few years.
Indeed, while the German bank's growth projection for next year stands within the government's 1 to 3 per cent forecast range - and is in fact above this year's official estimate of 1-1.5 per cent growth - it is far below the 5.3 per cent average growth in the preceding decade (2000-2009).
This article by The Business Times was published in The New Paper, a free newspaper published by Singapore Press Holdings.
