CAREER PROGRESSION, L&D AND BONUS STRUCTURES WILL BE KEY TO TALENT ATTRACTION IN A YEAR OF PREDICTED GROWTH

As the coronavirus pandemic swept the globe, economies contracted and industries were disturbed, companies worldwide were understandably concerned for the future. And yet, when 2020’s yearend provided an opportunity for appraisal, companies throughout China reported mostly neutral effects, the least damaging throughout Asia, even noting positive effects in growth and development opportunities. It is a situation that should hearten China’s employees for whom salary is a primary concern.

 

This year marks the 14th edition of the annual Hays Asia Salary Guide, which remains a definitive snapshot of salaries for positions across industries in Asia. The salary and hiring insights, including a thorough market overview of business outlooks, salary policies and recruitment trends, are based on survey responses from working professionals and companies from the five Hays operating markets in Asia: China, Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.

 

 

Although 30 per cent of employees noted that their salaries saw no improvement over the previous twelve months, a marked increase from the 12 per cent of 2020, when taken in the context of a tumultuous year it is a relatively welcome figure, especially when compared to the Asia average (35 per cent). Furthermore, China’s employees reported the highest brackets of salary augmentation, with 32 per cent receiving between three and six per cent increases, 15 per cent of responders receiving raises of between six and ten per cent, and five per cent of the workforce achieving the highest bracket of 10 per cent and above.

 

Building from this bedrock of positivity, 58 per cent of employers foresee their local economy strengthening in the year to come – close to double the Asia average of 33 per cent – and 56 per cent predict that their organisation’s activity levels will increase. As a consequence, employees perhaps rightly expect salary packages in 2021 to reflect these forecasts.

 

 

In uncertain times, it comes as no surprise that candidates on the move consider salary as their primary reason for seeking new employment (58 per cent), particularly as this has been the case since 2018. Jobseekers in China (69 per cent) were most likely to specify salary, a 12 per cent rise on 2019 figures, and some way ahead of those from Hong Kong , in second place with 64 per cent.

 

Also seeing salary as a high priority are professionals looking to remain with their employers. Although they still see work-life balance as their top priority (44 per cent), salary is not far behind at 43 per cent, climbing nine percentage points since 2019.

 

China’s workforce has noted the predicted domestic business growth – particularly in boom industries such as ecommerce and digital transformation – and are intent on actualising their value. For some, this may be a reaction to financial concerns triggered by the pandemic, though for others it is also likely an understanding that, as the economy grows and organisation activites increase, they should be adequately rewarded.

 

 

This belief can be seen in how China’s employees foresee salaries changes in 2021. 30 per cent predicted increases of between six and ten per cent in the year to come with 39 per cent expecting augmentation of above 10 per cent, more than double the region’s averages (14 and 18 per cent, respectively). However, many of these may be disappointed, as only 14 per cent of employers are planning to raise salaries by the former level and just four per cent by the latter.

 

This will mean that bonuses will be of increasing importance in 2021, and 67 per cent of companies planning to implement bonuses as per normal practice – above the 63 per cent of 2020 and the 55 per cent regional average – may come as some relief.

 

“With employee salaries perhaps not meeting expectations in the year to come, bonus provision could be one of the tactics for employers to attract and retain the top talent,” says Jessica Wang, Regional Director at Hays Beijing & South China.

 

“In a competitive recruitment market, employers may consider themselves to be in an advantageous position, but as so many companies foresee an active year there is an increased impetus placed on recruiting the best candidates that can drive them forward. This means, at a time when cost control is increasingly critical, they should look to offer more innovative enticements. Providing better opportunities for career progression – the second most important criteria for jobseekers in China – and implementing a better apparatus for improved work-life balance would be key in retaining top employees and recruiting the best available candidates.”

 

But for China’s professionals for whom salary is the sole prerequisite, requesting raises is a tactic that should be considered. At 74 per cent, China’s employees were amongst the least likely to do so, yet of those who asked, 69 per cent were accepted, a slight increase on 2020’s 68 per cent. As such, by knowing your market value as laid out in the 2021 Hays Asia Salary Guide, and seizing the moment, it is possible to improve your financial position in this year of advancement.

 

Download your copy of the 2021 Hays Asia Salary Guide by clicking here.

 

 

 

Hays Specialist Recruitment (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. is one of China's leading recruitment companies in recruiting qualified, professional and skilled people across a wide range of industries and professions. 

 

Hays has been in China for over a decade with operational offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. We boast a track record of success and growth, dealing in permanent positions across 14 different specialisms, including Accountancy & Finance, Banking & Financial Services, Digital Technology, Engineering, Finance Technology, Human Resources, Information Technology, Legal, Life Sciences, Marketing & Digital, Office Professionals, Procurement, Supply Chain and Sales. Hays China was named Best Workplace™ and Best Workplaces™ for Women in Greater China 2019, and recently ranked one of the the Best Workplaces™ in Asia by Great Place to Work®.

 

 

Hays plc (the "Group") is a leading global professional recruiting group. The Group is the expert at recruiting qualified, professional and skilled people worldwide, being the market leader in the UK and Australia and one of the market leaders in Continental Europe, Latin America and Asia. The Group operates across the private and public sectors, dealing in permanent positions, contract roles and temporary assignments. As at 30 June 2020 the Group employed c.10,400 staff operating from 266 offices in 33 countries across 20 specialisms. For the year ended 30 June 2020:

–    the Group reported net fees of £996.2 million and operating profit (pre-exceptional items) of £135.0 million;
–    the Group placed around 66,000 candidates into permanent jobs and around 235,000 people into temporary roles;
–    17% of Group net fees were generated in Australia & New Zealand, 26% in Germany, 23% in United Kingdom & Ireland and 34% in Rest of World (RoW);
–    the temporary placement business represented 59% of net fees and the permanent placement business represented 41% of net fees;
–    IT is the Group’s largest specialism, with 25% of net fees, while Accountancy & Finance (15%) and Construction & Property (12%), are the next largest
–    Hays operates in the following countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, the UK and the USA