KUALA LUMPUR (May 9): Fifty-four percent of Malaysians feel that they are not drawing a salary that fairly reflects their work contributions, according to a 2023 Salary and Bonus Expectations survey conducted by Randstad Malaysia.

The talent company in a statement on Tuesday (May 9) said that based on 302 respondents surveyed, 49% of Malaysian employees received only up to 5% of salary increment from their employers in the past three months.

“As global and domestic demands ramp up, companies need to grow and maintain their workforce to continue delivering products and services. One of the tried-and-tested ways to be successful in growing your workforce is to offer an attractive and competitive salary package,” said Fahad Naeem, Randstad Malaysia’s country director.

According to the survey, 91% of respondents in Malaysia would change employers if they are offered a higher salary. And of the 30% of respondents who changed their employers in the past 12 months, 49%were successful in negotiating for a 20% wage increase.

“Salary is a strong motivator to many Malaysians. Receiving a higher salary increment every time they change an employer means that talent are able to match their earning power with their international peers.

“It can also help them meet their financial goals, like buying a car or home, earlier in their lives. Companies that don’t support their employees’ goals may risk losing their best talent and in turn adversely impacting their overall operations and revenues,” said Naeem.

He added talent in Malaysia have higher expectations for their salaries due to less than satisfactory year-on-year pay increments and year-end bonuses.

Based on the survey, 39% of them were informed that their salaries will not be adjusted in 2023, while 31% of them were informed that they will not be receiving any bonus for their work contributions in 2022.

“Inflation and higher cost of living have changed how people choose to spend their money. It is only natural and reasonable that employees seek a higher salary and fair bonus to feel recognised for their work and valued as an employee.

“To attract top talent and meet their employees’ salary expectations, companies must make a conscientious effort to review and adjust their internal salary and bonus structures to reflect new skill demands and talent expectations,” Naeem said.

From Randstad's survey, 35% of Malaysians self-evaluate their average pay based on their job scope and responsibilities.

Only 16% of respondents approached recruiters and 14% used online salary calculators as independent sources when evaluating how much they deserve.

“We often estimate our salaries based on how much work we do. However, it is not a fair evaluation to assess one’s true worth as there are other factors like company budgets, industry averages as well as the supply and demand in the labour market to consider,” said Naaem.

Randstad surveyed 302 people who were living and working in Malaysia for insights to help employers and job seekers understand new talent expectations and how to navigate today's challenging salary negotiations.